


When You Run Among Shadows

by picimadar



Category: Gundam Wing
Genre: Action, Angst, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-10
Updated: 2013-09-10
Packaged: 2017-12-26 05:39:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 24
Words: 84,969
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/962251
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/picimadar/pseuds/picimadar
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When peace in the colonies is threatened, Relena risks everything she has in order to keep what everyone has worked for from being destroyed. They all know what she plans for the future, but what do they know about her past? 1xR and canon, 5xOC</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Another repost from ff.net. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoy!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for formatting issues. I hope you enjoy, this is a reposting from ff.net

November, A.C. 200: Brussels

They were all seated, each race, colour, language and religion represented among their numbers. Some of these factions were larger than others, yet there was no air of competition or anger. Not for each other, anyways.

A solitary, booming voice was lifted over the many gathered men and women, echoing in the vast, dimly lit hall; "But you still haven't told us why we're here!"

No one offered a response. They simply waited, their minds slowly milling the same question to themselves.

The woman seated before them slowly stood behind the podium. A small sigh exited her lips before she began to address their concerns. "We can all see that some of our seats are vacant," her typically pleasant voice began, with a hint of dismay. "Some have not left our numbers because they wished to be relieved. Some left because they believe that this peace we have been given, this peace we have all sacrificed for, is too….  _artificial_  for the people to accept."

Turning and focusing her pale blue eyes on the left side of the arc of seats, she remarked, "especially those people living in the colonies." The ripple of chagrined comments passed through the crowd like a muffled thunder. A new kind of silence stilled them; it was angry and disbelieving.

"We cannot blame these persons for choosing to leave us. They believe that they are doing what is best for them and those with whom they associate; we will make no move to force anyone to stay with us against their will."

The speaking woman was briefly interrupted by one of the affiliates of the group, a lean, blonde man of thirty who stood to address the group as a whole. "What the Minister is saying is right. It wouldn't be beneficial for us to keep anyone here who has motives elsewhere. All they would do is weaken our force and endanger those who are here for the most important reason: everyone else." With those notions added, he turned back to where the woman stood at their apex, just as she had since she was a young girl, and begged her a simple question.

"Relena, what on Earth has happened?

Again, the woman sighed, the weight of what she was about to say showing its magnitude as she struggled to continue.

"What I have been attempting to admit is that one of our own has launched a very serious threat against not only myself and my family, but also all of us assembled here. You are probably not aware, but I was threatened quite forcefully earlier this week by one of our newly -ah… ' _dispatched_  'members. I trust you can all guess who I'm speaking about?" Relena quietly asked as she looked up at the faces of her audience. Being met with only a few that held complete confusion, she hastily continued, "Those of you who do not will soon be informed by your respective superiors. Look, everyone, we have reason to believe that this man is not alone, that he will and has been aggressively recruiting amongst us as well as the members of the general public, specifically those who were involved more heavily in the wars of the recent past."

Several gasps of shock and a few nods of understanding were seen out of her nearly closed eyes as she felt them begin to water, not for the first time that day, and not for the last. Relena gripped the sides of the podium before continuing.

"I must implore those of you that remain to refuse to buy into the scheme of this madman. He has already convinced some of those that were truly close to us that his plans for domination and destruction are truly the best option for those who feel oppressed by this 'forced peace'. This is simply because himself and some other individuals feel less than pleased with the fact that they can no longer tote guns and be recognized as superiors by rank alone.

"Please, please, please, I have to beg of you; if you at all feel this way, you  _must_  understand that there  _are_  other options! And right now one of those happens to be combating this threat to what we have been working the last five years to create: peace."

Relena walked from where she had stood, a slightly raised stage, down to where the rest of her companions, lifelong friends, sat before her.

"If anyone is interested in helping me with this task, please know that you will be asked to work alongside the Preventer's already established force, and that you will be well equipped to deal with any hazards as well as financially compensated."

A young brunette hastily interjected, voice wavering, "Hazards? What do you mean, hazards?"

Relena deflected the question, raising a hand to her right in introduction. "Jesse," she said, addressing the still panic-stricken man young man, "I'm afraid I simply can't answer your question personally. I'll leave that to Preventer Grace Velasquez. She has more information than I do about the logistics of this situation, and she has agreed to share it with us. She has agreed to a bond of secrecy, and I personally can attest to her dependability." With that, Foreign Minister returned to the front row of the auditorium, taking her seat.

The solid, round-faced woman Relena had introduced took her place confidently at the podium, adjusting her uniform before speaking. "We have to assume that this group are just as readied to deal with a conflict as we will be. We, being the Preventers, also have reason to believe that they are in the process of building some kind of…. Well, for lack of a better term, 'super-weapon' in order to establish their superiority in the colonies with more ease than simple man-power. Several large shipments of metals and moulds for mass weaponry manufacturing have been intercepted in space. Thus far we have been unable to determine their specific destination, but it's obvious the shipments all originated from Earth. Other than that, we're as much in the dark as you are, I'm afraid."

Grace took her seat, gently rearranging her hair as she quickly stole a look at the unsmiling man beside her. He turned slightly to meet her gaze.

"I'm not sure it was wise to speak as much as you did. Some of us are reporters, you know," he whispered to her as the others began to more openly converse, "the last thing we need is the public being aware of what's really going on."

The woman nodded, surprised that the man was actually acknowledging her presence. "You can relax, Chang. I know their policies on privacy and silence just as well as you do."

Wufei grimaced. "Yeah, well, Jacobs knew it, too, the bastard," he said with disdain, watching the fellow agent's face tighten as he let himself relax back into his chair.

He then turned to his right, looking at the face of the small, silent woman seated next to him. Wufei had expected Ming herself to make some sort of comment to Grace, however her temper seemed indisposed. Gently he set a hand onto her dark hair and started running his fingers through it. She showed no reaction, except for a small tensing when one man shouted, "You never answered the question! What do you mean  _hazards_?! A 'super-weapon'? I mean, please!"

He continued ranting, his deep green eyes full of anger, "I'm sorry if this seems ridiculous, but my people are all colonists. I'm not going to willingly put them in danger to protect one person, whether it be you" he said, jabbing a finger at the young Foreign Minister, "or anyone else." He sat back down with a huff, running a hand through his short copper hair.

"We understand your concern, Lee, but this isn't just about me," Relena insisted, walking over and squatting in front of the man.

"Do you really believe I would be selfish enough to ask for all this help every time someone threatened me?" She allowed herself a brief chuckle. "You would never get enough time to sleep at night if I woke you each time I was in a 'threat situation'!"

She stood again, looking back around the group, all seated behind their dark, mahogany desks, looking much like her typical audiences in the Senate, only the demographic here was at least 30 years younger. The people quieted, their eyes locked on Relena as she addressed them all again.

"I would never ask you here to save  _me_. I'm asking you here because we have reasonable doubt that this man is just throwing out an empty threat, and because I am  _not_  the only one he is threatening. You are all correct; if his problem is with me, it is not for you to deal with, however this man is willing to take the lives of innocent people in order to further his ideal, rather than simply negotiating."

"Relena's right," added another young woman, clad in a rather flattering green dress that drew out the grey of her eyes and the blonde of her hair. "This guy isn't just messing around. You can all see how many of us are missing! Who knows who else this guy has convinced. Now, you all can do whatever you want, but me and my group are behind you one hundred percent, Relena." The men and women seated strategically around her nodded in agreement.

"We stand with you as well, Relena. We know that if this man takes over the colonies he won't be satisfied there. We will protect our land and yourself at any cost," one dark skinned man said, standing up and turning to see the people seated behind him.

"We'll make sure he doesn't get that far! The colonies belong to people who wish to live in peace!" A young man shouted as he jumped up, his own exuberant group cheering with him as many others made their pledges of allegiance to the woman standing before them.

Relena waited a moment before she continued to appeal to the crowd for the last time. "If any of you do not feel at ease with making this type of commitment, I will not be offended. The coming years will not be an easy one for anyone sitting in this room who sides with us. If there is anyone who wishes to stay and protect their own, please let us know now, so that we can begin planning with whatever numbers we have to stop this menace."

She waited in silence along with the others who began looking around, some expectantly, others with a shimmer of pride in their faces.

A few minutes passed, and Mingmei stood from her perch. "Well, since it appears no one has made an ass of themselves by abandoning us or Miss Relena, I suggest we adjourn. You should get back before your guard misses you, shouldn't you?" She suggested, giving a meaningful glance to Wufei.

"Yes, unfortunately we must depart. You will contact us again when you need us, correct?" said an Asian man, speaking his English fluidly, despite his lack practice with it.

"Yes, Cuong, we'll let you know when and where we need you," the Mingmei responded, giving everyone the cue to begin leaving.

Wufei noticed Ming stand, her eyes focused on Relena. She turned to Wufei, their eyes meeting for a moment. "How's Mai?" He asked with concern in their native dialect, looking the beautiful and well-feared lady up and down.

"She's fine. Growing fast." She quickly returned, turning back to Relena. "I think Lena wants me for something; I'd better go check it out." She started walking away, then paused and turned back to the young Preventer.

Her voice was heavy and sarcastic. "Wufei, Mai asks for her 'daddy' every night at bed, to read her a story." The woman's voice quavered slightly as she turned away again. "What am I supposed to tell her? 'Oh, sorry, sweetheart, Daddy's too busy saving the world to visit…  _Again_ '?"

With that she started walking quickly over to where Relena and the fair-haired woman in green stood waiting for her, leaving Wufei looking guilty and confused in her wake. He frowned, shook his head, and walked stiffly out of the room.

The women watched Mingmei as she approached, and smile crept onto their features. "Man, what did you  _say_  to him? He looks like somebody just died!" The grey-eyed woman laughed, patting her on the back. Mingmei sighed, shaking her head. "I didn't say anything he doesn't know already, Middie."

The other two women nodded, understanding her situation. "Well, Ming," using the woman's nickname, "after we get this all worked out, hopefully everything'll be normal, right?"

"That would be nice. Relena, what did you want?" Mingmei just got right to the point, a habit amongst her and her group that Relena was growing to appreciate more and more.

"Well, it would seem that one of the pilots will soon have to chose between us and Jacobs," Relena said, the other two trusted women gasping out the names of those closest to them.

"No, no, not either of them," Relena said, shaking her head as she looked at her feet. Ming immediately sensed the source of Relena's anxiety over the past few weeks.

"Relena, we'll know where he is, regardless. You know he wouldn't just screw us over and fight with them," the blonde assured her, trying to peer around Relena's hair as it blocked her face from view.

"Middie, she knows that. That's not what she's on about." Ming laid a hand on her friend's back.

"Relena, nothing is going to happen to him. We'll make sure of that."

The fearful woman just shook her head. "You don't understand," she whispered, looking dismal, "he's  _more_  than a handful.."

She was quickly cut off by the laughs of the other two women echoing around the meeting room. Mingmei patted her on the back heartily as she held up her free left hand.

"Relena, look who I married!" She said as she shook her head, making her case in point clear to the other two women as she left the assembly room, Middie following quickly after.


	2. The Need

September A.C. 200: Sanq Kingdom

Relena lay in her bed, body still, breathing light, and her eyes unfortunately open _. I wish my mind would stop!_  She yelled to herself as she slowly sat up, looking over at her illuminated bedside table.  _Three o' clock?_ She cursed time itself as she gently and quietly stepped out of her king-sized bed, walking over to her vanity.

She looked around the room, examining all the glorious displays of what her fame had brought her."They're just… things!" She had argued with Milliardo, "it's not as though I'm ever _home_ anyways! What do I need this monstrosity of a bed for, if I'm never going to sleep in it!?" She laughed at the foreshadowing in those early conversations.  _I never_ _do_ _sleep in it, anymore_.

"Former 'Queen of the World' indeed," Relena muttered as she examined herself in the large mirror atop her cherry-wood dresser. Dark circles lined her eyes and her cheekbones protruded unflatteringly, making her face appear too thin. The blonde's hair was lank and lackluster. She had cut it to just a few inches below her shoulders in a fit of rage one night, but she had since enjoyed how it felt and kept it that way. Over the years it had developed a little waviness and had lightened, but due to her lack of good health it only carried as much beauty as a messed up shag rug.

Turning away in disgust, Relena crossed her suite, looking out the double doors that led to her balcony. It was the one addition in her massive home she had been totally willing to pay for. Relena stole a quick glance over her shoulder before she turned the gold doorknob, achingly slowly,  _praying_  she didn't alert one of her cursed bodyguards who just always had to be awake! Finally the bolt moved out and she swung open the door, the July breeze coming off the ocean and into her room, bathing her in the scent of the sea and swaying the bottom of her nightgown around her ankles.

She stepped out onto the cold marble, the full moon cloaking her in its glow. Slowly walking over to the railing, she rested her elbows on the edge, having ensured it was just the right height for such things before she had even had it installed. Relena stared out at the ocean below, wishing she had been a floor lower so she could feel the spray.

 _Yet another thing that reminds me of him_ , she felt her brain commentate as she turned away from the roar, concentrating on a lovely spot on the floor below her. She felt her legs give out slowly. Why did she have to think of  _that?_  Of  _him?_  Immediately she felt her sanity slipping, her exhausted mind dragging her through the memories of her last few years of life… as if the first time hadn't been enough.

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AC 198- Brussels

_Relena stood in front of the entire senate, watching them as they watched her, the room babbling with the voices of all those gathered, including the local and worldwide media, bustling for the best shot of the young Vice Foreign Minister turned full Senate Advisor. Her bodyguards, courtesy of the Preventers, were also noticing exactly the same thing she was: a full senate assembly, and not one, single argument in progress._ _Practically a miracle, she quipped to herself, continuing the plastic smile as the announcer commended her to the crowd._

_The new Foreign Minister and Advisor to the President looked over to her right quickly, catching a young Quatre Winner's eye as he too scanned the crowd. Looking just as uncomfortable as she herself felt, the eighteen year old man simply stood and waited, seemingly begging the powers that be for the practical coronation to end, hoping he could just return to normal life._

_But that simply couldn't be, Relena conceded as she turned her eyes back to the President. Quatre's skills and honesty were just what the colonists needed to represent them, and he had never opposed the idea outright, even though he insisted that he was 'inadequate for the position'. Relena had to chuckle a little at that, remembering the way he had stuttered out a feeble refusal when she had approached him about the position. However, after Quatre had gotten over the initial shock, he seemed to have come around to the idea of being a member of the Parliament more and more, glad to fill a position that was desperately needed in order to ensure that the colonists received the fair treatment they deserved._

_And so the two of them had both progressed quickly through the ranks of the ESUN parliament, now sitting at nearly equal positions, one Foreign Minister for the Earth and Advisor to the President, one Vice President Presiding for the Colonies. Although there were naysayers to the two very young persons holding such power, everyone who knew anything about them could see they were more than capable of using their power wisely._

_Relena looked back to the people gathered by the lavish double doors, immediately recognizing a few faces. The woman kept her face calm, yet schooled as she was, it was difficult. She had immediately known something was wrong when Mingmei walked through the door, especially with her young child in tow. To anyone else they seemed just like the rest of the curious civilian observers, but Relena could see Wufei stiffen as he realized what she had. Something was terribly wrong._

_Finally the ceremony had ended, and she had done enough fake smiling and given enough compulsory handshakes that she could finally leave the Brussels Parliamentary Buildings without causing anyone to be piqued with her. She dearly wished to sprint out the door, giving Wufei a meaningful look as she caught up to Mingmei and a few others, who had wisely departed the main entrance and were waiting outside. Being the guard in charge, Wufei quickly told the others to give the Minister her space, assuring everyone that she was in no danger._

_And in reality, what he said was totally true. Standing now among these three men and one woman, she was as safe if she'd been with the Gundam Pilots themselves. Almost, anyways._

_"What the hell are you doing here?" Relena said furiously, although to any onlookers it would appear as though she were cordially greeting her old friends. Looking over her shoulder, she could see by the looks on her guards' faces that they were less than convinced of her safety._

_"Jesus, Princess, nice to see you, too!" The tall blonde to her left had joked, the man to his left also snickering. Relena just stared at them crossly._

_"Liam, shut up please," Mingmei said quietly, "And you too, Jesse," she said to the brunette, the two men quickly clamming up. "Nothing horrible has happened, we were mostly here to see the ceremony anyways." Ming said, trying to be as fluid as possible._

_Relena quickly saw through her ruse. "You all live on the colonies. There is no reason to merit you coming all the way here to witness something already on the television."_

_"Oh, this is gonna be good," Liam said, nudging Jesse as they both watched Ming intently. The third, dark man remained silent._

_"Look, Relena, we know that Quatre in office is a good thing for most people; after all, we_ _did get him in," Ming nearly whispered, looking very grim, "but there are some colonies who are declaring their offers of 'independence or war' as we speak."_

_"Yeah," Liam threw in, "so you're not the_ _only one who's on TV."_

_Relena's eyes grew wide in horror. "They're not serious…. This can't be happening. We haven't even tried to tell them anything about how we expect them to live! How can they be rejecting this idea?" Her cheeks flushed with pent-up fury as she glared at Ming, her eyes turning steely as they demanded answers._

_"Relena, it's not like it's every single colony!" Jesse had said, sensing the deeper anger that lay beneath her relatively calm exterior._

_"Well then how many!?" Relena was ready to shake someone, her outrage was so great. She had predicted this as a possibility, certainly, they all had. It never meant she wanted it._

_"Right now, three," Ming responded calmly, trying to ease the trouble the reality of that statement would bring. "As of this hour, no others have made any move to add to their declarations, but there's something you should know…"_

_"Then just tell me and get it over with. This already looks suspicious and I do not need you to give the press another reason to hound me," Relena fumed, being much less controlled than she meant to be._

_"Well, several of the colonies that have declared independence are those that still have the facilities to mass manufacture weapons," Ming said cautiously, watching Relena's face pale. "Relax," she added quickly, "none of them are active, and we'll know if they are, but we thought you should know now, so that we can all hopefully be prepared."_

_The group of men and women looked at Relena expectantly, but she quickly shook her head and backed away. "No, no, no. You are making assumptions." The blonde raised her hands in front of her as she continued walking backwards. "You are making assumptions. There is no 'us'. I will not ask you all to put yourselves in danger. We have the Preventers now," she continued, trying to justify herself. "You would be nothing more than some glorified messenger service."_

_The others now shook their heads. "Relena, that's not what we're asking. We're telling you that ever since we disbanded, things haven't been the same," Jesse said, walking over to her slowly. He lifted a hand and ran his fingers down her cheek. "Relena," he said, his voice low, "we don't know any other way to live. We need direction, we need to be together." He sounded as though he was pleading, but Relena would have none of it._

_She pushed his hand aside, and, looking back at the others, said "There is nothing I can do for you. I will not bring back what is dead." With that she began quickly walking back to where Wufei and the others were waiting for her._

_"Relena, we need you."_

_The small voice caused her to turn abruptly, looking at Jesse's forlorn face. She paused, as though something pressed on her heart, but having no other response to offer, she turned again and crossed the grassy lawn._

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 _They had seen it then_ , she thought dryly as she continued to stare blindly into the night.  _They had known what was coming, they wanted to be prepared, and I was foolish enough to stop them!_  Tears slowly began forming behind her lashes as she let the repressed waves of despair wash over her.

 _I could have stopped this… I could have kept him from…_  Relena refused to let herself finish the thought, picking herself up quickly but underestimating the kinks in her legs from sitting on the hard surface.  _How long was I sitting there?_  She thought as she felt her legs wobble and force her to sit again at the edge of the balcony. Relena put her head in her hands, feeling exhausted, as she was plagued by another memory…


	3. Running

September A.C. 187, North Wales

_Relena held her mother's hand tightly. People stared as the pair meandered past, taking their time on the unusually sunny afternoon._

_"Mother, I don't_ _want to go to this school. I don't understand why I can't just stay home with my friends," Relena voiced quietly. Although she was used to the lack of privacy that came with a famous father, she felt at ease in the large park. There were few other families out this early in the morning, and the large, sturdy trees were covered in immense amounts of foliage, blocking any potential spectators outside the grounds. All the same, habit kept her voice low; you never knew when someone was listening._

_"Relena, your father and I agree that it would be good for you to spend some time exploring the world," her mother responded, "and it would definitely be good for you to spend some time out of~"_

_"~my father's shadow," Relena finished for her. "You want to make sure I'm not smothered at home with all the reporters around, is that it?" She stopped walking, bright blue eyes piercing with frustration as her mother knelt to look at her._

_"Yes, Relena. That's just it. You're..," Mrs. Darlian smiled lovingly before continuing, "you're so special to us, Relena. You're so smart. We want you to be your own girl! We want you to have the opportunity to make your own choices. If you take some time here, you can have these opportunities for growth, without having to worry about what tabloid it will be on the cover of tomorrow._

_"Is that fair?" the only mother the youngest Peacecraft had known pressed her hands to the girl's cheeks. "Are we being fair to you, Relena?"_

_Even at such a young age, Relena was perceptive. She could see the unwillingness to leave in her own mother's eyes, a mother's worry that she was making the wrong choices for her only child. Although she felt very alone as soon as she thought it, she knew her mother was right._

_"Yes, mother. This is fair."_

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September A.C. 191, Hong Kong

_Her feet were propped on the desk when the Headmistress entered. "Ah, Miss Relena. I've heard much about you. It's truly a pleasure to finally meet you," she said with as much tact and grace as possible, extending a hand to the young child._

_"I'm sure it would be if my father were here," Relena responded odiously, moving her feet off the oak furniture and ignoring the courteous greeting. Great, another one of_ these _, she had thought, crossing her arms and looking away from the grey-haired woman._

_The Headmistress sighed. It was just as the she had been forewarned; the girl would be trouble. "Well, that may be true, Miss Relena, but we are certainly happy to have you stay with us."_

_The child laughed, her golden curls bobbing around her shoulders. "You must not have read my "rap sheet" yet then, Headmistress?" Relena relaxed back into the large wingback chair, awaiting the punishment and backhanded insults that were the usual following once her file was opened._

_"Actually, dear, I had taken the time to read your file over previous to your arrival here in China, and I have to say it is impressive." The woman picked up the rather weighty folder as we walked around her desk. "Public disturbances, food fights, protesting, terrorizing staff… You were never the only student involved, were you, Miss Relena?"_

_Relena clasped her hands together. "Those students chose to listen to me. They also chose to behave as they wished. Whether or not they happened to work together with any specific plan or goal has yet to be proven," she recited. Her father's lawyer had been very clear about this._

_The Headmistress stood and looked at the girl, a look of mixed puzzlement and awe upon her face. "Well, it seems you have a gift for persuasion and leadership, doesn't it Miss Relena?"_

_The child said nothing, surprised at the lack of sarcasm or disdain in the woman's voice. She balled up her dark dress in her fists, eyes on the floor beneath her feet. Just like my father, she had thought._ _They send me away to become myself, and I just become more and more like them. It was a fact that had frustrated her to no end. As badly as she wanted to just melt into the background, her own impulsive refusal to be trampled on and ignored kept her in a unique sort of spotlight. Everywhere she went people knew her name, stopped to stare on the street or in the hallways. Every school she attended they had heard of her, heard of the trouble she had caused._

_"Miss Relena?" The Headmistress queried, seeing the look of deep thought on her charge's face. Once Relena looked her back in the eye, the woman adjusted her suit jacket and sat down behind her desk. "I have a proposition for you. We have arranged for one of our students to be a sort of.. 'au pair' for you while you're staying at our school. Along with helping you adjust to our local culture and customs, he will also give you a tour of the campus, and it has been arranged that you two share most of your classes together. We believe that this will make your adjustment easier."_

_Relena simply stared in disbelief. "I don't need a babysitter, Headmistress," she uttered threateningly, her brow furrowing with irritation._

_"I'm not suggesting that you do, Miss Relena. All I ask is that you meet this young man, and decide for yourself what to make of it. I can see your gift with people, child. Imagine what could happen if you used it for more than petty food-fights and pranks."_

_A solid knock sounded on the door, and the woman stood to open it._

_"Miss Relena, let me introduce you to Chang Wufei."_

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 _It was such a simple thing_ , Relena thought, her cheek pressed to her knee as she remained crouched and vulnerable on her balcony. She recalled all the class trips, her times in Brazil, China, Canada, her various school child exploits. Her vision slowly blurred with unshed tears as she realized that every step of the way, there had been a friend, a classmate, someone she knew and loved. Someone had always been there for her, to comfort her, to take the blame, to make the punishments pass more quickly.

The tears started their decent slowly, as they always did; her soul would cry long before her body ever did. Relena slowly collapsed to lay on the pale marble, vulnerable and alone. Her sobs filled the air, but no one heard her.

… _I never meant for it to be… like this._

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Trowa sat in the darkened surveillance room, a few corridors away from the Foreign Minister's suite. In the past her guard routines had been much more rigorous, but lately few threats had been made against her person and so few attacks had been made against any other members of the ESUN that her security team had been reduced to a select few members who had requested to stay.

Trowa was one of these. He enjoyed the night shifts especially; the mansion was quiet this late at night, and he enjoyed the privacy and silence. Day shifts were rare for himself personally, but he enjoyed the presence and companionship he had in Relena, as well as the chance to travel.

Relena understood his need to wander, and she was not unlike him in many ways. She, too, preferred her privacy, so on nights such as tonight he tried to intrude as little as possible, watching the video screens and listening as little as necessary to ensure her safety.

Trowa shook his bangs aside casually as he turned back to the wall of monitors, their dim glow the only light in the room. He glanced at each one, noting no changes, until he came to that of the former princess' room.  _She's not in bed_ , he thought blandly, not overly concerned. Clicking a few buttons, he shifted the screen to an outdoor camera, and couldn't see her on the balcony.

 _Where is she?_ He momentarily panicked, not seeing her face or body above the railing. Shoving himself out of the chair, he picked up his gun and headed into the hall.

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Sobs wracked her small frame as she lay on the unforgiving, unyielding surface. Tears openly streamed down Relena's face as she wrapped her arms around herself, afraid she would burst.  _Why am I still hurting?!_  She screamed internally, feeling each ripple of hurt constrict her chest and leave her breathless.  _Why did you leave me all alone?_

Slowly, she stood, looking out over the balcony again, her arms always tight around her. "Look at me," she whispered, staring out at the nothingness, the darkened sky over the ocean. "Look what I've turned into!" she shrieked, suddenly crouching and openly moaning with the pain in her chest, behind her eyes.  _I can't take this anymore_ , she admitted, with a surprisingly great sense of release.  _I can't be what everyone wants of me anymore. I'm doing the world a disservice. I'd be better off-_

"I'm losing my mind!" she hissed, loosing her grip on herself and grabbing the railing.

Looking back, Relena couldn't decide if it was to steady herself, or to keep herself from crushing her own ribs. Either way, grabbing the rail gave her a sudden, irrational, and liberating idea, as she stared up at the full, glowing moon.

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Trowa lightly knocked. "Relena? Open the door," he stated simply, hoping she had simply been in the a moment, a dark, haunting thought he wished would disappear seeped into his thoughts, and he suddenly wished beyond all hope that she wasn't there after all.

Swinging open the door quickly, he raised his gun, entering the room with purpose and a practiced precision. Determining no one else was in the room, Trowa reached and flicked on the lights to both the expansive room and the balcony.

Training kept him from utter shock, as it had many times before. He launched himself for the terrace doors, Relena's silhouette outlined by the moonlight, her unlit figure standing atop the banister.

Even the loud wrenching of the doors and their slamming against the walls inside did not snap her from her reverie. Trowa slowly approached her, arms outstretched, afraid to scare her. A fall from her height into the ocean could kill her, he knew.  _Although she likely does as well_. Standing to her right as she balanced atop the railing, he looked up at her face.

Eyes closed, breathing slow, and cheeks flushed, her pastel nightgown billowing around her in the ocean's breeze, Trowa realized she had not looked so beautiful in years. Relena, for the first time in too long, looked alive.  _How ironic_ , he considered,  _that she would try so hard to end what I try to protect_.

Her voice broke his reverie. "Why are you not trying to stop me?" She murmured, turning to face him. Her eyes opened, and Trowa absorbed their blank, dull appearance, set in her tear-stained visage.

"I'm giving you the chance to stop this yourself, Minister," he stated clearly, offering her a hand to steady herself. She set her hand into it, as he examined her too-thin and pale skin, a sheen of feverish sweat on its surface. "You need help, Relena. You won't find that at the bottom of the sea."

She wrenched her arm away from him too quickly, gasping as she then waved her arms to steady herself. "I don't  _need_  anything!" Relena howled at him, backing away as quickly as she could. Trowa was too agile in comparison, and he quickly grabbed her arm again.

Jerking her around to face him, he took hold of her chin and twisted her face toward him. "Relena," Trowa's voice was steely, "you won't find  _him_  at the bottom either."

For a moment, she simply stared at him, unbreathing. He could see so many different emotions flash behind her eyes; anger, sadness, mourning, hatred, and then, one Trowa himself knew best. A deep, inconceivable emptiness.


	4. Caged

Late September, A.C. 200, Sanq Kingdom

Elegant, yet simply decorated, the reception area gave off a distinct air of structure. Each shelf had many large texts, old and new, ranging from animal behaviors to neuroscience journals, arranged in a perfect wave from tallest to shortest and back. The month's magazines were arranged perfectly on small end tables, accompanying a few coffee-coloured couches and recliners. Every surface was immaculately polished, from the glass of the lamps, emitting soft yellow light, to the dark hardwood floors. It seemed that the professional using the space greatly valued this sort of organization, however the slightly dazed-looking receptionist clearly did not.

Although the room was beautifully furnished and inviting, Relena desperately wanted to escape. She darted her sea-blue eyes to the door and saw Trowa still standing there, arms crossed, staring directly back at her. To anyone else he would have looked half-asleep with boredom, however Relena was used to reading the typically passive man's face. She could see the minute furrow in his brow, the way he stood directly in her projected escape path, and most importantly, the glint in his narrowed eyes.

She knew exactly what the look meant:  _Don't even think about it_. Although living day-in and day-out with the former pilots ensured her safety, sometimes it became difficult to deal with. Normally Relena was not a very disclosing person, but each one of the men, in their own way, made her feel readable as a child's picture book.

Relena hated it, that feeling of vulnerability. She hated it nearly as much as she had hated being dragged in here, during her lunch break no less. Tossing her hair over her shoulder, the fair-haired young woman made sure the look on her face told her personal detail  _exactly_  how she felt about his little stunt. Trowa obviously noted the icy stare and sudden change in posture from her, however he simply looked toward the tiny, redheaded secretary seated behind her radically disorganized corner desk and shrugged, as if he were apologizing.

It was maddening. Relena opened her mouth slightly, choosing between uttering some choice words or simply ignoring him, when the phone on the assistant's desk began to ring. The jarring noise spooked the both women, and Relena resisted the urge to shriek.  _Get a grip_ , she internally scolded, becoming more and more aware of how on-edge she was becoming.

"Minister?" The redhead,  _Stephanie Durand_ , Relena noticed her nameplate read, timidly called her attention. "Doctor…. Hart will see you now," she finished, looking up from the screen apologetically. "Sorry, Miss Relena. Doctor Hart is here on temporary transfer, and I'm new myself, so I'm not familiar with everyone's appointments just yet."

"That's fine. Thank you," Relena said cordially, giving one final, infuriated glare at Trowa. Seeing no reaction, Relena stood and walked towards the door Ms. Durand was now holding for her. Straightening her pale blue skirt and jacket, she slowly stepped through into the office.

Twenty minutes later, Trowa decided it was safe to step away from the door and be seated, relaxing into one of the large, padded recliners available closest to the door.

"You really think that's safe?" Stephanie questioned, looking around from her computer screen toward him.

He nodded, before settling his chin on his chest. "The chance that the minister will be attacked in a private building such as this is negligible. Besides," Trowa added with a trace of mirth, "I'm still faster than she is."

"Better hope that's true..," she replied quietly, returning to her task while avoiding his questioning stare.

His unspoken query was answered when the door to Dr. Hart's office suddenly slammed open, revealing a flushed and furious Foreign Minister. Relena rushed past the reception desk, wrenched her coat from the rack, and made for the main entrance. Launching himself out of his chair, Trowa quickly positioned himself between Relena and the door. As she attempted to approach the door and avoid him, he grabbed her by the elbows.

"Minister, what is the problem?" Trowa asked quietly, holding her struggling form as she tried to free herself.

" _I don't want this_. I don't know what you drugged me with in order to get me here, but I am most definitely ready to leave," she whispered. Seeing a repeat of the same "look" Trowa had given her before, she clarified, " _Now_ ," grinding the back of her high-heeled shoe into his toe.  _I hope that hurts you as much as this is killing me_ , she thought selfishly, ashamed that her eyes were filling with tears. Relena turned briskly around as she heard another heeled set of feet.

Doctor Amelie Hart was standing nonchalantly in the doorway to her office. Considering her preference for absolute order concerning her personal belonging, it was no surprise that the doctor herself was a picture of perfection. Trowa looked her over, even still, with a slight sense of surprise. Judging from her pristine skin and slim figure, he couldn't assume she was much older than he himself. Her deep brown hair was pulled into a tight but stylish bun, showing the silver drop earrings that brought out the brilliant and mesmerizing slate colour of her eyes.

"It's quite alright, Officer Barton," Amelie assured him charmingly, snapping him out of his momentary reverie. "I believe Relena and I have made enough progress for today."

Relena simply stared at her for a moment longer, a look of alarmingly strong vexation still apparent on her face, before darting out of Trowa's grasp and running, as quickly as her footwear would allow, out into the parking lot.

Trowa turned swiftly to join her, two burning questions on his mind:  _how do I know this woman_ , and more importantly _, how the hell did she know my name?_

The car ride back to the Parliamentary Building was silent, the vehicle's two occupants seemingly too consumed with their own thoughts to be troubled about the other. Relena simply stared out the deeply tinted window, trying to hide the tears she knew would inevitably come.

Trowa pretended not to notice, unsure of how to approach such an obviously volatile situation.

" _Hello, Minister," the doctor had greeted her genially, shaking her hand before gesturing at Relena to take a seat._  " _Since this is our first session, I'd like to start by asking you a few general questions, that is, if you don't mind?"_

_Relena adjusted her jacket as she sat down, sinking into the all-too-comfortable recliner facing the other woman. "Yes," she responded carefully, "that sounds fine." Although she had, at some point while obviously out of her mind, agreed to attend a session with the doctor, she refused to act happy about it._

" _Great!" Amelie had responded, reaching over to her nearby desk for a clipboard and pen, then jotting down a little information. As Relena waited, she took in her surroundings. The rear wall, behind the doctor's chair, was entirely composed of large floor-to-ceiling windows, muted by long, sheer curtains. The rest were covered in light yellow paint, tastefully accented with a few wall-mounted lamps. The desk the doctor had opened was of heavy construction, either antique or a well-made imitation. Each piece of furniture complimented the other, a fact Relena appreciated. It was nice to sit comfortably in a well-decorated room compared to her usual stale and sterile meeting rooms._ _There,_ _she congratulated herself sarcastically,_ _you found the positive!_

" _So, Miss Relena…. Do you mind if I call you that?"_

" _Not at all."_

" _Great. What exactly is it that brings you to my office today?"_

_My pig-headed personal irritant which most would simply call a bodyguard_ _, Relena thought tartly. "I was referred by a personal friend who believed that it would be beneficial for me to seek therapy as an option to relieve my personal stress," she responded truthfully._

" _I see. Why do you think this friend is interested in you attending these sessions?" Amelie continued. "Are they concerned for any particular reason?"_

_Yes, doctor! It may just be that he found me crying and covered in my own blood three weeks ago. Thanks for the breakthrough!_ _"He has great interest in my personal safety."_

" _Ah, I see. So this person cares very much for you?"_

" _Yes, I suppose you could say that. He is a very caring person."_

" _Excellent. It is very important that you surround yourself with people who care for you," the doctor said slowly, "people that you're sure you can trust."_

_Their eyes met briefly, and Relena began to feel…. odd. Before she could figure out what had caused it, the doctor continued her barrage._

" _On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate your personal happiness on a typical day?"_

" _I would estimate a four," Relena answered, trying to be as honest as possible._

_Dr. Hart made more notes, jotting the pen quickly over the lined paper, "I see. Why did you choose four?"_

_Because it's my favorite number? Why do you think I chose it?!_ _Relena was beginning to feel the tedium affecting her. Personal questions were not something that agreed with her right now, or ever._

" _I chose it because it reflects what I believe my happiness level is. My job has been called one of the worst in the world. I'm personally held responsible for situations that are beyond my control on a daily basis. I take care of things on such a level that if I didn't handle them, people would die, and when I do, no one notices."_

_Amelie held up a hand to stop her. "I wasn't asking about your job, Miss Relena, I was asking about you. Please try to separate the two; it will make our progress much faster."_

_Relena had difficulty maintaining her hatred when Amelie smiled._ _She's so pretty. Why would you choose to be a doctor when you could be a model? One's certainly easier than the other.._

" _Now," the doctor continued, "It has been made known to me that your adoptive mother passed away recently." Relena stiffened, angry._ _How could he!_ _She clenched her fists as the woman continued to speak, "How does that make you feel?"_

_For possibly the first time in her life, Relena could not think of a single thing to say. Her mother's death had been unexpected, painful, and quick. Her job left little time for mourning, and thankfully the funeral and burial ceremonies had been kept very private. There was no way this woman could know, unless someone Relena had personally asked to attend the ceremony had told her._

_Relena fumed. However, the intense, strange feeling returned upon her quickly as she stared at Amelie._

' _People that you're sure you can trust….'_ _, Relena mulled the thought over, examining the woman's face, for the first time truly scrutinizing her features. Grey eyes, pale skin, dark hair._ _The hair is obviously dyed_ _, Relena realized suddenly, noting its lack of shine and lowlight._

" _Miss Relena?" asked the doctor warily. "Could you answer my question?"_

_The Minister had to strain to keep from gasping as she recognized the expression, the face, and the woman entirely._ _Unbelievable_ _, Relena internally scoffed._

" _You made it right through a Preventer check by yourself?" Relena asked bluntly, leaning forward in her chair._ _Let's see you answer a few questions yourself._

_Dr. Hart hesitated. "Of course, Minister. I doubt your personal detail would even allow you in the building without ensuring your complete safety. Now, getting back to my question~"_

_Relena cut her off. "Impressive. Could I see your diploma?"_

" _Yes, it's just in my desk; I haven't had a chance to hang it on the wall just yet," Amelie stood and opened the bottom drawer of her desk, leafing through a few different papers. Relena stood and placed her hands on the desk, peering down at her._

" _You can stop this charade any time now, if you don't mind. I'm a busy woman." Relena's voice was low with anger, not at 'Amelie' herself, but more for having been duped by her disguise for exactly eighteen minutes._

_The 'doctor' knew better than to play games; she had been caught. "I do actually have a degree, you know," the crouching woman said in defense, standing back up to slouch against the surface before her, mimicking Relena's position._

" _When did you find time for that?" Relena asked genuinely, loosening her stance._

_The woman shook a hand mildly. "Oh, you know, in between blowing shit up and running the odd con. Business has been slow," she said, winking at the Foreign Minister. "You know I've always liked figuring people out. I'm 22. I figured it was time for a legitimate source of income."_

_Relena laughed quietly. "Not to mention it's a great cover."_

" _Indeed."_

_The two women stood for a few more moments, unsure of what to do. The dark-haired woman was the first to speak._

" _Relena, I am genuinely here to help you," she chose her words slowly and carefully, aware that she was treading on perilous ground._

" _I don't need help."_

" _You're losing it, Relena. Don't think I don't know about your little stunt in Sanq," she started again, harsher. "We're worried about you. I'm here to help you."_

_Relena felt her anger beginning to boil. "If I needed help, I'd talk to~"_

" _Who, your mother? 'Cause she's dead, in case you didn't notice."_

_It was more than Relena could take. "Middie, if I've said it to you once, I've said it to you a thousand times. I_ _don't_ _need to be 'figured out'. I don't need to be told my own goddamn mother is dead!" The blonde grabbed her bag roughly and started for the door._

" _Relena, we both know you need this," Middie said softly, attempting to show her sympathy._

_Pausing momentarily, Relena turned on a heel. "The last thing I need from_ _anyone_ _is being told what_ _I_ _need." With that, she wrenched open the door and began gracelessly exiting the premises._

The car pulled to a stop in a nearly deserted parking lot to the north of the where Relena's office was located. Trowa exited the sleek, black coupe and opened the opposite door for her, extending a hand to help her out. The young woman whispered a small thanks, allowing him to escort her back to the large stone edifice.

"I'm sorry," Trowa finally broke the silence as he entered his PIN code on the locked entrance, "I shouldn't have pushed something on you that you didn't want. It won't happen again."

Relena looked at him as if puzzling something beyond comprehension. Finally, she strode through the open door, she simply replied, "Please book me in again next week, if it's possible…. And thank you."

 


	5. Regret

November 20 A.C. 200, Colony X-18997

"Can I top yah up, Mistah?" asked the well-endowed waitress, a tray filled with mismatched glasses in one hand, gesturing to his empty glass with the other. He simply nodded, and the woman whisked the glass away and replaced it with a full one. Winking cheekily, she gave him a brief pat on the shoulder as she walked away, crowing in her thick drawl, "I knew yah weren't finished yet!"

He never used to drink, before.

Lately, however, the intoxicating fluid had become his crutch, dulling the pain he felt inside and out. The solitary man ran a hand through his thick, brown hair. It was a human attribute, needing something to depend on. In his line of work trusting another person was not an option, but the bottle never disappointed.

Out of habit he examined the exits, noting the people standing near them, mulling around, chatting. A group of young men, carousing and laughing; three older women, unwinding after work; and a young couple, sitting across from each other, holding hands. He lowered his deep blue eyes, settling them back on the cup of dark fluid in front of him.

He never used to sit alone before, either.

His brow creased as he checked his watch for the third time. 8:15. Neil was late, as usual. Although occasionally haphazard, Neil Carmichael was always loyal and diligent. Punctuality, however, was not one of his strong points.

"Sorry, man!" his company gushed apologetically, careening through the small bar's entrance. "Although you're probably used to it by now, huh?" The man sat down across from him at the small table, signaling a waitress, who quickly walked over while fixing her red curls. "Oh, I see why you get here early, you just wanna scope all the cuties before I get the chance!"

"Is there anything I can get for you, sir?" said 'cutie' asked shyly, avoiding both their gazes.

"Yeah, just gimme a rye and coke," the second man replied, smiling. The young girl nodded fervently, turning and practically running back to the bar.

"Wow…. I gotta start getting here on time, before  _you_  scare all of 'em away!" Neil stripped off his coat before leaning back casually in his chair, stretching his long legs. The silent man continued to stare at him, not appreciating his attempt at humor.

He used to laugh.

"Oh, come on now!" his black haired friend continued jovially, "you know I'm just messing with you, Caden!"

While his friend was served his drink from the same high-strung waitress, Caden briefly swirled the deep brown fluid around his glass before raising it to his lips and quickly draining it.

He used to be Heero Yuy.

Thousands of miles away, Quatre Winner woke with a start.

He could  _feel_  it, a pain deep in his chest: the pain of loss. This pain, however, was not his own, but a residual sigh of regret passed on from another. Since he was a child, Quatre had found himself incredibly susceptible to the emotions of others. These feelings were passed along through their expression, their speech, but sometimes he could grasp even more than what intuition alone could reveal. He could feel someone else's pain after losing a loved one, the heated boil of anger, even the cool, penetrating grip of death as it took a life. Most of these came only as passing whispers, however for the people he was closest to, those he had a deeper connection with, Quatre always seemed to feel each of their emotions uniquely and strongest.

Blue eyes searched for a bedside table, hands grasping the clock. 2:15 am. Quatre groaned, throwing himself back down into his pillows.  _This is the third time this week_ , he internally groaned, rolling onto his side. Someone was hurting, their heart torn between two equally horrible options. Quatre could feel it, each time the chilling apprehensions of what  _could_ happen inched into this person's mind. He knew just from the sheer strength of it that someone he loved was falling apart.

 _Relena…,_  Quatre thought sadly, remembering the feelings that threatened to drown even himself during her months of hopelessness. Until then his 'gift' had seemed useless, its effects on him even dreaded, but that night he truly experienced why he had been given it. He shivered as he remembered placing his call to Trowa. Shaking with raw terror and dismay, Quatre had known what had happened to her long before Trowa reported back.  _Thank God_ , he had thought,  _thank God I even thought to call_.

Since then, Quatre had been extremely careful with his 'inside view' of people's hearts. He tried not to see everything, hating the invasion of privacy, but all the same, he no longer tried to stop the foreign feelings from entering his consciousness. He had learned a way of identifying which strong, invading feelings came from those he was closest to, desperate to keep an incident like Relena's from repeating itself.

It wasn't her, tonight. Relena's feelings always came over him slowly, like a fog, seeping into his least pressing thoughts before eventually consuming even his actions. These new, dark, lonesome impressions were different from any Quatre had experienced in years. In the beginning they were infrequent, coming on strongly and sharply, before quickly passing over. Now, they were flooding him almost daily, waking him from deep sleep and startling him when awake.

Quatre sighed deeply. Deciding it was useless to try and continue sleeping, he climbed out of his oversized bed and crossed the room, powering up his computer.

As it booted up, the blonde young man reached for the nearby telephone, but hesitated before dialing.  _It's only 11:30 there_ , he thought, concluding that his intended target would be awake. The phone rang exactly twice before the line connected, the voice on the other end expectedly gruff.

"Chang here."

Quatre smiled, happy to hear his old friend's voice, regardless of how aggressive it may have been. "Hi Wufei, it's Quatre."

There was a noticeable huff on the other end. "Is there a  _reason_  you're calling me at this hour? It's 2:30 there, Quatre. Go back to bed."

"W-Wait!" the younger of the two men stuttered, "There's something I need to ask you!"

"Well then spit it out. I don't have all night, and neither do you. The Summit's in a month, you know."

Quatre sighed.  _Stupid summit_. "Yes, I'm aware. It's not… well, important, I guess. It's about Heero," he admitted.

"You know I can't tell you anything more than you already know," Wufei answered sharply, but harshness couldn't hide the man's utter frustration from Quatre. "For all we have, he's dead. Or hiding underground in the Sahara. Or sailing the Panama Canal."

"Wufei, he's in space."

Not knowing how seriously the man would take his "mind-reading thing" as Duo would call it, Quatre braced himself for a possible onslaught, but it never came.

"That's what you think? What makes you so sure?"

"I don't  _think_  it as much as I  _feel_ it," Quatre tried to explain, "Lately I keep getting this feeling that someone's feeling horrible. That someone's gotta chose between bad and far, far worse."

He could feel Wufei's incredulous irritation. "It's the same feeling I got when he destroyed Libra," he practically whispered, "It's the same feeling I got the night he disappeared."

"Exactly the same? There have been some threats made recently, Quatre. Perhaps it's just someone else nearby," Wufei brushed off the information as gently but firmly as he could manage, refusing to believe what he was hearing.

"Goddammit, Wufei! It's not a coincidence. Heero Yuy is alive and in space!" Quatre immediately regretted yelling. There were better ways to convey how he felt, but the raging headache and lack of sleep certainly weren't helping anything.

"What do you suggest I do, Quatre? If Heero doesn't want to be found, we won't find him. It's just the way it is."

"Well, he obviously doesn't want whatever is being laid out for him either! Wufei, we have to find him, or something horrible is going to happen. We both know what Heero's capable of. I'd rather be hunting him as if he were the enemy than have him show up and confirm he is!"

Quatre waited while the other man silently digested his suggestion. "Quatre, just be careful. Relena isn't the only one people would like dead," Wufei said slowly, "You're coming here to Brussels for the Summit soon. Get here early. I'll see what I can do by then."

Quatre sighed, but didn't know what more he had expected to come of the conversation. "Thank you, Wufei," he answered, fatigue beginning to show in his voice. "I appreciate you listening. I'll come in a week early; I don't think I can manage more than that, unfortunately."

"That's fine, Quatre. Take care of what  _you_  need to first. Heero Yuy is Preventer business, and things otherwise have been slow. I'll look into it right away…. But I think it would be best if you kept the others in the dark for now," Wufei advised after a moment.

Quatre voiced his agreement and a brief "Good-night" before replacing the phone onto its base. He knew exactly what was implied by 'the others'; it was the reason why he had chosen to call Wufei instead of someone closer, or more amiable. Quatre didn't know how Trowa might have reacted, but he knew better than to approach Duo or Relena before they had more solid evidence.

Standing and stretching uncomfortably, Quatre made a mental note to purchase a more comfortable desk chair before returning to bed. Turning his pillow over and rearranging the sheets a few times, Quatre hoped that whatever Heero was battling with, he would make the right choice.  _Or at least_ a _choice, so I can get some sleep!_

Wufei hung up the phone quietly, running a hand down his face.  _Heero Yuy is alive_ , he thought dryly, forcing himself to accept it.  _Of course, it's a more likely possibility than him being dead, after all._

Hearing footsteps in the hall, Wufei turned around quickly, grabbing his gun off the nearby coffee table and aiming it toward the noise. He quickly lowered it after realizing who had entered the room.

"Are you going to do that  _every time_  we're here?" Mingmei asked, an eyebrow raised with concern and irritation.

The man simply lowered his head apologetically. "I'm unused to the noise at night. If you haven't noticed, I don't have many visitors here," he replied, his sharp tone contradicting his posture.

"Well, that's a great excuse. I'm sure Mai will be as understanding when you point that  _thing_  at her," she shot back airily, turning on a heel and walking to the kitchen. Wufei simply let out a low growl before following her.

"I would never hurt her, and you know it. It's my job to  _protect_  her." Wufei practically challenged Mingmei to argue with him, insulted that she would insinuate he would ever endanger those he swore to protect. "It's also  _your_  job. Did you ever think of the danger you put us all in by coming here?"

Mingmei set down the kettle she had been holding heavily onto the stove. "I know  _exactly_  how much danger we're in, Wufei. Did  _you_  ever think of how dangerous it is for us back at home, in space!?" she retorted angrily, her voice rising as she turned her back to him.

Wufei wanted to yell at her, to shake her for being so careless.  _How on Earth did I let this happen_ , he thought to himself, his hands becoming fists. _Why the hell did I agree to this?!_

"Ming," he said, straining to control himself, "you  _are_  home, here."

It had been the wrong thing to say. "Really?" Ming laughed sarcastically, "Oh yes, I feel so welcome when I get home from work, open the door, and see you there leveling a gun at me!" Wufei opened his mouth to argue, but she wasn't finished. She turned and jabbed a finger into his chest.

"You know, I had to give up a lot of goddamn things I wanted to be able to take care of  _our daughter_. I live in the safest part of town. I have a legitimate job. I take Mai to school every day and I'm there  _early_  to pick her up. When I'm gone, I make sure she's with someone I absolutely trust to keep her safe. She is  _everything_  to me, Wufei."

All he could do was stare at her, surprised with the sudden uncharacteristic rant. "Ming, I never said you had to give up your life for this," he started, trying to diffuse the situation before they both woke the young child sleeping nearby. "We've both had to make sacrifices. I've made a lot of changes too, and I'm trying to make things easier for both of us. You should have told me this was how you felt. I would have done something. I would have~"

"Would have what, Wufei? She can't stay here with you. She's too young. It's too dangerous." Brushing off his attempt at and apology, she sighed heavily. "I'm sorry. I meant for all that to come out more…. Eloquently," she apologized quietly as her eyes brimmed with tears, turning away from him.

Wufei would have continued the conversation, but the kettle's whistle cut him off. Instead he examined the young woman as she went about preparing tea. Her sleek, black hair was held up by a deep violet clip, slightly curling at the ends from the day's styling. She wore a short, simply patterned robe, tied tightly at the waist. It was a deep green, her favorite colour. Wufei slowly approached her, wrapping his hands around her middle and kissing her on the neck.

"Wufei, if you don't get out of my way, the tea will burn," Mingmei said quietly, turning around without breaking his hold. Wufei leaned in and lightly kissed her lips.

"Let it," he whispered, pulling her closer into his embrace.


	6. Group Therapy

September 30A.C. 200, Sanq Kingdom

Once again, Minister Darlian sat in the too-comfortable recliner waiting for 'Doctor Hart' to arrive at the office. Although she was relaxed knowing that the woman was someone she could trust, she still dreaded the inevitable questions that her therapist and friend would ask.  _Why in the world did I come back here?_  she wondered, dropping her head into her hands.

At that moment, she heard Middie come in the front doors, greeting Trowa and the young receptionist before opening the windowed door to her office.

"Well, hello there, you!" the dark-haired woman said in a surprised tone, looking her over. "I thought you'd be back… it's my charm, isn't it?" Middie asked, pausing to take in Relena's small but radiant smile before continuing to her desk.

Relena remained seated, watching as Middie, now  _Amelie_ , unpack the small briefcase she had carried in. "What do you carry in there?" she asked, curiosity forcing her to speak before she had intended to.

Middie looked up at her briefly before continuing to unpack. "I'm aware that you would prefer our meetings not be made public knowledge," she explained. "I keep everything concerning them in this file here. That way, should any sensitive information be passed on to me, I can ensure I'll be the only one to see it." Finishing with her business, the grey-eyed woman sat down across from Relena, starting a fresh page on her clipboard before placing it in her lap.

"Well, Relena," she said, her voice light, "Where do we go from here?"

"What do you mean?" Relena replied, confused. "This is  _your_  job, I'm just the patient. Shouldn't you know what to do?"

Middie smiled. "You're also my friend, Relena. I know it's against the law for me to even be considering you a patient, but I'm willing to keep this professional as long as you are."

After Relena gave an understanding nod, she continued, "I don't want to hurt you, but we can all see that whatever you're going through is affecting your work performance. You're out of focus, you forget people's names, and you aren't keeping up you're your paperwork." Relena lowered her head in shame, knowing it was true. Middie noted this before continuing, "Relena… I want you to keep doing your job. I can see that you do, too, but you absolutely have to be honest with me if this is going to help you."

 _Honesty_ , Relena thought. The one thing she had been absolutely schooled by her father to maintain, and she did in every dealing she was a part of. Relena was proud of her ability to remain honest and still make the excellent progress that she had, something rarely seen in the political realm.  _Why is it so easy to be honest with people I don't know? Why can't I confide in the people who I trust the most?_

"Because you don't trust yourself," Middie answered, as if she had read the younger woman's mind. Relena's head snapped up at this, eyes wide with consideration. Middie simply met her gaze, sure about what she had said. "You blame yourself for things beyond your control. "

Relena laughed bitterly, resting her head back on the rest. "What on Earth are you talking about?"  _Please, don't let this go where I think it's going,_  Relena begged any higher power that would listen.

Middie hesitated, then, furrowing her brow, continued, "You blame yourself for Heero leaving." Relena felt as though she had been punched in the stomach.  _She_ _would_ , she thought, irate with Middie for bringing it up. The instigator, however, ignored her patient's obvious anger. "You think that he left because of you. You blame yourself. You're afraid that if you open up to someone close to you again, they'll abandon you just as he did. He made a mistake, and he'll have to live with that. It was not  _your_  fault, Relena."

Tears started to form in Relena's sights as she continued to stare at the woman before her. "You have no idea why he left. You don't know  _anything_  about what happened. Don't you dare tell me how I should feel!" Disbelieving and furious, she prepared herself to stand up and leave, buttoning up her jacket and uncrossing her legs.

"I don't know what happened. I don't know why he left. But I will absolutely tell you how you should feel. Don't  _you dare_  tell  _me_  how to do  _my job_ ," Middie countered, looking up from her notepaper. Relena paused, mouth open, considering what her counselor had said. Although she desperately wished to just curl up at home, weep, and forget about the world, remembering the world was her job. Even though her world had long ago fallen apart, Relena had made a promise to the people to do her job. Short-servicing them was not an option. Stuck between a rock and a hard place, Relena had no choice but to concede to Middie's abrupt but honest methods.

"You're right," she eventually whispered, drawing Middie's attention back from her notebook. "I blame myself. I always think that if I had said something differently, or not done certain things, maybe he would still be here." Relena looked up at Middie hopelessly, eyes threatening to overflow with restrained tears.

Middie couldn't help but be compassionate regarding her long time friend. "That's normal, Relena. Everyone has regrets. Everyone thinks that if they could change the past, things would have come out differently. Whether you're an existentialist or not, facts are that it can't be done. You can't change the past. Things are what they are, however unfortunate it may be.

"That said," she continued, "What you're doing now affects the rest of your future forever. Perhaps more importantly, it affects what happens with our world, at least for the foreseeable future. Is one man, regardless of who he was, and what he was to you, worth that?"

Relena wished to find no argument against Middie's speech. She had obligations to her family, her friends, and virtually the universe.  _Why does it have to be so hard?_

"I don't think you take enough time for yourself," Middie said by way of answering her internalized question.

"How do you keep doing that?" Relena asked skeptically, crossing her arms. Middie laughed at her, as if the answer was obvious.

"Relena, I've known you a long, long time. If I couldn't tell what you were thinking by now, I wouldn't be a very good friend, would I?"

Deciding that was fair enough, Relena allowed Middie to continue, "Whom would you say you are closest with?"

"Well… the people I live with, I suppose," she answered, unsure of what was meant by the question.

"So your personal detail, your family, that sort of thing?" Seeing Relena nod, Middie set her papers and pen down onto her desk. "Would it be at all possible to have them come in as well?"

Relena couldn't help but burst out laughing at the mere  _thought_  of some Gundam-pilot group therapy. "Trust me, they've been offered the chance before, and they made it pretty clear how they felt about it," she confirmed, seeing the expectant look on Middie's face.

"They would do it for you," she responded slowly. Seeing Relena's look of confusion, the brunette explained, "They love you. If they thought coming in to see me would help you in any way, they would do it." Relena shook her head furiously.

"I don't see what you could possibly want with them," she said, placing her hands up as if blocking the idea from even entering her mind, "but I certainly won't blackmail them into coming here for any reason, whether it is actually to help me, or just to sate your own curiosity."

Middie simply stared at her. "I just think it would be favorable to have a view from every side of this situation," she replied. "Discussing the issue is part of the healing process, and I don't believe you were the only one affected by Heero Yuy's disappearance."

Relena nodded, remembering the varying but consistently pained reactions following the termination of the search for Heero. "Like I said, they've all been offered some sort of counseling at one time or another and have refused. If you really think it would help them, I could attempt to convince them, but it would likely be best if you spoke to them personally… and privately," she added. "I doubt that any of them will appreciate feeling singled-out or forced into this."

"I understand. Well, put your killer gift of persuasion to work, and I'll make some time later this week to talk with some of them," Middie said, pushing up the sleeve of her black turtleneck to check her watch. "Looks like your break is almost over. You should get headed back."

Relena stood up and grabbed her bag before turning back to the other woman. "Middie… thank you for being so blunt with me. I really… needed that." She put forward a hand that Middie shook briefly, however the brunette did not let go.

"I was just shocked you didn't hit me! Trust me, I may not say what you want to hear, but I won't ever shove more in your face than you can handle." Releasing the fairer woman's hand, Middie watched as she headed for the door. "By the way, Relena?" she called just before as Relena turned the knob, "just because you're referring me more patients, don't think I'm too busy to see you. You're booked in next week."

Relena released an audible groan as she quickly opened the door and shut it forcefully behind her, leaving Middie chuckling in her wake.

If there was one thing Relena hated, it was an empty house. Generally the estate she owned was never unoccupied; at least one member of the cooking or cleaning staff was always present, ensuring her absolute comfort and ease. Relena always appreciated having a familiar face to come home to, and a butler or cook was certainly better than nothing.

She also had her security team, a group of men and women who monitored her actions and kept her safe in various surroundings around-the-clock. Although Relena individually, with the help of Commander Une and her brother Zechs, selected each of her personnel, she always preferred the company of those she knew best, namely the ex-Gundam pilots.

When she returned home from work, exhausted, Relena couldn't help but smile as she noticed the lights on in various, typically unused rooms of the house. As her heels clicked along the cobbled driveway, the blonde woman heard a brief burst of laughter just behind the front door. Once she was a little nearer the entrance, the door burst open dramatically as Hilde Maxwell nearly jumped into her arms. The two hugged tightly, each terrifically glad to see their friend after a longer-than-usual absence.

"I've missed you so much!" they both chorused, hugging each other tightly.

"Oh, so where's mine, Princess?" a familiar voice asked from behind them. Relena grinned, skipping forward and hugging Duo tightly. The braided man was her day shift stand-in, as well as her guard and tour guide while on her trips to the colonies. He didn't mind making the occasional trip to Earth, but since he owned his machine shop in the L2 colony cluster, he was more available to spend time with her when she was closer-by. His and Hilde's presence at her home was unexpected, but always welcome. "We were in the area, I had an… _appointment_  with Une," Duo explained, holding Relena at arm's length. Looking her over, he seemed to approve of what he saw and gestured for her to continue inside, hooking an arm around his wife's svelte waist and following after.

As Duo and Hilde greeted Trowa, Relena continued inside, hearing more voices bantering in the manor's inner rooms. Following the noise, she found Quatre, Dorothy, Wufei and Sally sitting casually in one of several parlors, drinking tea and having quiet discussion. Wufei and Dorothy were obviously at odds over some subject, sneaking careful glares at each other as Quatre and Sally attempted to diffuse the situation. Relena watched from the doorway for a while, noting all the small and nearly undetectable social cues circulating amongst her friends, appreciating that she could decipher each fleeting display of emotion. Finally, she entered the room, greeting each of them with a bright smile and warm, enveloping hug.

Although Wufei made it quite clear he valued his time in the field alongside Agent Po much more than the solitary duty he would willingly step in for one of the other agents on duty, should they need a break or request time off duty. Sally herself had grown to appreciate Wufei's companionship over the past few years of working alongside him, but the two had never progressed past a mutual friendship and understanding of each other.

After a few minutes of conversation, Relena panicked, wondering if her any of her staff were aware of her guests and how on Earth she would feed them all, when her head chef entered the room and informed her that their dinner was ready. Beaming with gratitude, Relena stepped forward and lightly kissed the petite, middle-aged woman on both cheeks before guiding her guests out to the large dining room.

Trowa, Duo and Hilde were already waiting there, along with her brother, Zechs, and Lucrezia Noin, visiting from nearby Brussels on a brief sabbatical from their work with the Mars Terraformation Project.

"Brother!" Relena exclaimed, rushing over to hug her single living relative and his wife. She hadn't seen either her brother or sister-in-law in several months. After placing the couple in charge of the Mars Terraformation Project, both had been taking trips to and from the red planet several times a year, staying there the majority of the time to oversee the various construction projects.

As everyone took his or her seats around the table, conversation began to flow easily. Wufei filled in Zechs and Noin on various details concerning Relena's personal safety and other details pertaining to their work with the Preventers, occasionally being interrupted by Duo's quips and additions. While not provoking Wufei, Duo also joked with Trowa as they discussed the recent success of his business. Relena and Quatre traded details about an upcoming Senate meeting before being shushed by Dorothy. "No business at the table," she chided airily, quickly dominating Quatre and drawing Relena's attention, as the two chatted about various galas and charity balls in the upcoming future.

Quatre simply sat, quietly savoring the excellent meal while observing each of the people lining the dining table. Each one was glowing with their own version of happiness, congratulating each other, offering advice, sharing exploits, all the while eating and carousing. Relena seemed as though she had something on her mind, and Quatre was glad they were all together to hear it, as he could see the thought weighed on her deeply.

All the pilots had different work habits, different preferences, different lifestyles, but they had one thing in common; they would die for Relena as quickly as they had offered their lives for the peace of the colonies.

Relena herself knew this, as she perched at the head of the table opposite her brother, picking at her food.  _They may die for me more readily than attend therapy_ , she thought sardonically.  _They'd throw themselves in front of a gun before they would talk about this_. Finally, as plates began to empty and the conversations quieted, Relena addressed all of them, knowing if she did not at least ask, Middie would find out and likely punish her for it.

"As I'm sure some of you are aware, I've started seeing a personal counselor," she began, noting them nod in confirmation. "I believe we've made excellent progress concerning several.. issues…," Relena struggled to continue, unable to find words. "I'll just come out with it: My therapist wants you all to see her. She thinks it would help us all if she could ask a few questions concerning various … traumas we've all faced together."

Duo was the first to start laughing. "'Ask a few questions', eh? What is she, a cop?" he asked, pushing his chair out from the table and slouching down. Hilde put a hand on his arm, but chose not to say anything, along with the rest of the members at the table. This was exactly the reception Relena had expected.

Finally, Quatre spoke up. "Well, I'm already here. I can't see the harm in speaking to your doctor, especially if she thinks it will help you. I don't have anything to hide." Relena perked up at that, smiling in the blonde man's direction.

"Thank you, Quatre. I'll get you her number before you leave," she responded, again falling silent.

"I'll see her, too," Sally consented. "I've been interested in entering the counseling profession. I'm sure we could have an information exchange," she finished, smiling through Wufei's glare.

"Do we get time credit for this?" He asked darkly, turning his scowl on Relena.

"You'll be compensated for any time off work, if that's what you want," she responded, and Wufei nodded his consent.

Dorothy patted Relena on the hand after surveying the table's guests once more. "I might as well talk to the poor lady. After all, after dealing with  _them_ , she's going to need someone sane, just for balance!" she finished, laughing. Relena rubbed her fingertips against her forehead, massaging where the impending headache would likely manifest.

"Thank you, Dorothy. I'm sure Doctor Hart will appreciate that."

Finally, Relena realized she had encountered all the acceptances of her offer that she would that night, and sighing, stood from the table. "Thank you all for coming tonight. I'll make sure that rooms are prepared for all of you." After a few protests, she waved a hand dismissively. "No 'buts'. I have the space; it's no problem at all. I trust you all can find ways to entertain yourselves? I have a little more paperwork to take care of, I'm afraid." Relena stepped away from the table, giving Quatre's nearby hand a brief squeeze of appreciation before retreating to her office.

Duo continued to sit in his dinner chair, eyes closed, with his chin resting on his chest. The others slowly departed the table as the staff began clearing the remains of the meal, careful to make as little noise as possible in case they disturbed the seemingly sleeping man.

Hilde was the last to leave, pushing his dark bangs back as she stood and kissing him on the forehead. "I love you, you know," she whispered, running the back of her hand down his cheek. Duo opened his eyes, raising his face towards hers.

"I know, babe," he answered quietly, looking away from her questioning expression and crossing his arms. Hilde, knowing she would receive no answers for her questions, removed her hand and also left the room.

"I love you, too," Duo whispered, knowing it was once again too little, too late.

Relena gathered a pile of papers with her deft fingers, tapping them on the desk to attempt fitting them in a large manila folder. A soft knock at the door interrupted her struggle with the stack of sheets, and she called out for her visitor to enter. Hilde poked her head around the door slowly, reluctant to interrupt her friend while she was working.

"Come on in, Hilde. I'm just about finished," Relena said, encouraging the woman to enter the private space. It wasn't often that the two had much time to spend alone together, and lately they had both been missing each other.

Hilde sat down in a chair facing Relena's white painted desk, sighing as she did. "I'm really sorry," she said. When Relena looked up at her quizzically, she explained, "for Duo. I don't know what comes over him sometimes," she trailed off, avoiding the other woman's gaze.

Relena nodded. "Don't apologize for him. I hadn't been expecting a different reaction, to be honest. He'll talk when he's ready."

"It's been over a year, Relena. He may not be ready to talk, but I am," she said, brow furrowed. "I'm tired of not being able to bring it up. I mean, every time I even mention  _anything_ about our own damn wedding he gets all sullen! And it's not as though I can talk to you!" she said forcefully. Relena simply looked down, pretending to be preoccupied with her paperwork. After realizing what she had said, Hilde clapped her hands over her mouth in shock. "Oh, Lena… I didn't mean that. I'm sorry. I just… this is so unfair," she said, voice heavy.

Relena stood up from her desk and approached her friend, enveloping her in a strong hug. "You're allowed to be angry," she whispered, "You're allowed to be frustrated. I'm sorry that I haven't been able to be here for you. This is why I'm seeing a therapist in the first place. How can the people rely on me when my own family can't?" She stepped away, eyes darkening with anger with herself, for letting her friend down.

Hilde laughed quietly, standing up. "Well, it's not as though we've been right here for you, either," she added, looking towards the door. "I should probably go, Duo will be wondering where I am. Could I get that number? I'd like to see this lady before we leave again," she asked. Relena quickly jotted it down on notepaper and handed it to her. Hilde stashed the note in her pocket before quickly hugging her friend again and exiting the office.


	7. Query

A car rolled down the street, turning a short corner and continuing away. Somewhere down the same street, a woman could be heard hollering a hearty "good-bye!" as another car drove off. Next door, someone was fixing some plumbing; clanging, groaning metal and curses could be heard over the sound of gushing water.

None of these noises, however, were the reason Wufei was now only half asleep.

Two tiny feet slowly paced the hardwood hallway floor, and with each half-pass nearest to his door, a light rapping would follow. After the third pass, Wufei opened his eyes and threw back the covers. Stepping out of bed, he grabbed yesterday's tee shirt of the floor, pulled it on and opened the door.

Mai stood in front of him, fist raised, ready to tap the door yet again. After losing her look of surprise, a she donned a bright smile and held her hands up, one elbow pressing a stuffed animal to her side. "Daddy!" she shouted, running the two short steps to Wufei's feet and clutching ahold of his leg, "mom's makin' breakfast! 'Nanimal pancakes!"

Wufei looked down at the child, seemingly weighing his options, before squatting down and taking hold of her under the arms, holding her close to his chest for a moment before propping her on his hip and heading to the kitchen. "She sent you to wake me up, hmm?" He asked Mai, watching as she enjoyed her 'bird's-eye-view' of the house, her head pressed against his shoulder.

"Mm-hmm!" She said emphatically, lifting her head to look at him, "but mamma told me to be careful, because when you sleep you turn into a angry dragon, and nobody wants to wake up a angry dragon! Is that true, daddy?"

Wufei considered how to answer her question, wondering if there was ever a time he would have believed such a thing.  _Was I ever a child, like this? Were we ever really children at all?_

Before he had thought of a good answer, they had reached the kitchen, where Mingmei was already behind the stove, working away on breakfast. Mai squirmed and Wufei put her down gently, and as she ran into the kitchen he crossed the dining room and headed to the front door. Turning the latch and opening it, Wufei took in the mid-morning sunlight and the smell of autumn steeped in the air. He stepped outside and walked down the driveway, waving cordially to a jogging neighbor and grabbing his copy of the paper from the pavement before heading back inside.

For some reason, today, none of this quite agreed with him _. When did I become so suburban? When did this become normal?_  He thought, reopening the door and sitting down at his kitchen table. Snapping open his paper, he started reading about some local news.

"No, it's okay, you go ahead and wait there while I make everything,  _honey_ ," Ming said, speaking loud enough that he could have heard her from anywhere in the house. Sighing heavily, Wufei stood up and walked into the kitchen. "What do you need me to-"

"Set the table," Mingmei replied shortly, pointing to the dish cabinet while still facing away from him. Wufei cocked an eyebrow but said nothing as he pulled several plates out of the cupboard and took them back to the kitchen table. He decided attempting some conversation was better than the allowing the aggravated silence.

"So it turns out they approved that funding for the Terraformation Project," he started, looking over his shoulder into the kitchen. Walking back in, he leaned against the doorframe and stared at his wife. He was well within her peripheral vision; he knew she could see him.  _What is this woman's problem today?_  he asked himself, walking around behind her and peering over her shoulder at the breakfast she was making. Ming abruptly shouldered him out of the way, carrying the hot pan into the dining room and calling Mai to the table. Wufei rolled his eyes and followed.

The three sat down at the table, Mai bouncing and delighted about her ''nanimal'-shaped pancakes and favorite fruits. After asking if she could watch some cartoons, Mai excused herself, carried her little plate and plastic knife and fork into the den, and turned on her favorite show.

The two stared after her, disbelieving looks on their faces as they heard her giggle and change the channels. After a short, breathy laugh, Ming looked back to Wufei, shaking her head. "Do you remember when we found her, Wufei?"

He looked at her, matching her gaze as the memory of that day came back to him. It had been years ago, a few months after Mariemaia had been deposed and some order had been brought back to the world. Wufei had gotten his job in the Preventers and his life was running fairly smoothly. "You showed up at my work and scared the crap out of Sally," he said, grabbing his utensils and cutting into his pancakes. "She thought you were having an episode."

"Well can you blame me? I'd been looking for her for two years," she replied, her voice dropping lower at the memory of that time. Two years of looking for a child she wasn't even sure had lived through the destruction of their home colony, and after finally finding her records, learning that she had, indeed, been saved. "It's still a miracle we found those papers. If she'd been born even six months earlier…"

"Her birth certificate wouldn't have been registered," Wufei completed her sentence. "We were lucky she was in the database by then. We were lucky she got sick, I suppose."

As a baby, Mai had been very ill. Born premature, she hadn't had the lung strength as an infant to live a healthy life, and had needed a transfer to a specialty hospital on Earth to treat her condition.  _Had she not had that transfer, she'd be dead,_ they both thought, examining their breakfasts while mulling over the gravity of the circumstances, even if they were in the past.

"Remember when we saw her, in that hospital?" Ming asked, a slight smile lighting her face as she looked at him again.

"Of course," he replied. Mai had been sick, pale, covered in wires and tubes. By the time they arrived, she was recovering, but had come close to death. Even that sick, she had looked beautiful to them. "That damn nurse wouldn't leave us alone. Kept asking us for identification, made us put on those ridiculous haz-mat suits just to hold her.."

"I can't believe everything we had to go through just to get custody of her. I wish we'd at least had the same last name…" Ming continued, tilting her head away from him. Wufei let out an offended grunt.

"You regret marrying me? We had a deal, this was  _your_  idea," he retorted, pointing his fork at her.

"I don't know. Do you remember what the date was, the day we found her?" She asked carefully, sitting back in her chair and crossing her arms.

Looking at his watch, Wufei suddenly realized two things. The first was what he had forgotten. The second was that he was trapped. Slowly looking back at her, he replied, "It was October 17, 197. Three years ago, today."

Mingmei stood up and deftly slapped him in the back of the head before storming down the bedroom corridor. "And that would be why  _you're_  doing the dishes."

Amelie Hart was, in the opinion of her mousy secretary, was an interesting woman. Stephanie had met her clientele over the past few months. They ranged from actors and musicians to office workers and even Relena Darlian herself. Stephanie could hardly contain her nerves, thinking about such a distinguished and famous lady visiting her office. She had idolized the Foreign Minister for years; the two had even attended the same boarding school in New Port City once. Relena obviously didn't remember her, but Stephanie wasn't offended; she realized it must be difficult being so popular and loved.

Which brought her back to Amelie. There was something about the exotic, driven woman that Stephanie simply couldn't understand. Her clients loved her; even Miss Relena conversed with her as though they had known each other for years. Dr. Hart would disappear for days on end, cancelling appointments at the last minute with no excuse. Her clients forgave her with ease, and continued to give her glowing reviews, and Stephanie was paid for being on schedule regardless, so she didn't necessarily mind, but it kept bringing back the question: _Where did she go?_

Stephanie was only a secretary. She knew it was none of her business, but she was curious. Sometimes Amelie would return from her "vacations" in a furious mood, eyes blazing like someone had earned themselves a personal vendetta. Those times were the ones where a lot of doors were slammed and phones answered in strange tongues Stephanie had never heard.

Other times, the dark-haired woman would come in looking like she had been dragged through the depths of hell. Unexplained bandages, bruises, aches, dark circles lining her eyes and many cups of coffee were commonplace, and her clients often joked that she must be a street fighter in her spare time. These jokes were often answered with retorts that if that were the case, they simply needed to pay Amelie more, and the subject was promptly dropped.

The questions kept coming, but there were just no satisfying answers for them. Stephanie sighed, as the phone rang for what must have been the hundredth time that day, picking it up and answering with her usual "Dr. Hart's office, how may I help you?"

"Hello Miss Durand, it's Relena Darlian." Stephanie immediately sat up straighter and grabbed her notepad. To miss anything important would be a disgrace to this fine woman. "I'm running a few minutes late, a meeting ran longer than I expected. Can you tell Dr. Hart I'll be there in about fifteen minutes?"

Stephanie cleared her throat and desperately tried not to stutter. "Y-yes, Miss Darlian, I'll let her know right away. I'm sorry but I wasn't aware you had an appointment booked today. Is the doctor expecting you?"

"Yes dear, she is, she called me to let me know she'd had a cancellation," Relena replied patiently, knowing the continually startled woman meant well.

"Oh-oh-okay, Miss Darlian, I'll see you in a bit then," was all Stephanie could think to say, hanging up the phone and reaching for her water bottle. After what seemed like seventeen seconds, Relena walked through the doors in person, her bodyguard Officer Barton and a petite woman Stephanie had never seen before following her. Relena looked to the reception desk and smiled, raising a hand in a brief wave before walking towards her doctor's office. She turned back briefly to look inquisitively at what must have been her friend. The women's eyes met, and the raven-haired girl waved Relena off while taking a seat next to Trowa on one of the soft leather couches.

Relena entered the office, shrugged off her light white wool jacket, undid the buttons on her lavender blazer, walked over to the all-too-comfortable "client chair" and collapsed, breathing a sigh of relief as she slouched down into the cushioned bliss.

"One of those sorts of days, hmm?" Middie said, amused, as she looked over the top of her glasses at the rapidly disintegrating woman in front of her. "You need a coffee, or was that more of a "gin and tonic" kind of sigh?"

Relena almost laughed, lifting her chin off her chest to look at her friend. "Trust me, there's not enough liquor in the world to self-medicate for others' stupidity."

Middie laughed. "I know a few people who would disagree. What happened? I read this morning you made some progress with the Terraformation Project funding. What went wrong?"

Relena sighed again, sitting up and straightening her clothes before looking the other woman eye-to-eye. "This isn't about that… Is your room secured?"

Middie nodded. "As if it'd be anything else. Trust me, hun, the day someone gets in here who isn't me or someone I let in, I'd know."

"Perfect," Relena replied. "It's about us." Middie immediately understood exactly what she meant by "us"; she sat up and leaned closer so they could keep their voices lower. "Jude called me this morning and told me there's been another disturbance on his colony. There were weapons… it's the third time this month."

Middie nodded her head; she had read the reports. "How many casualties?"

"Sixteen. Mostly civilian."

The two women sat silently for a few moments, saddened and gravely considering the news. Middie was the first to speak again.

"Relena, I know that this seems like a huge deal right now-" The blonde woman shot her a glare to kill, "- and it is. But Jude can handle it." Relena looked away, rolling her eyes. "Right now, we're on the clock. What I'm interested in is you. What happened to you this week? You like like crap."

"Oh, thank you, I've been trying all month for a compliment like that. Now I feel on top of the world," Relena replied sarcastically. "What do you want me to say? I'm exhausted. I can't sleep. My job is killing me. I feel like the senators are just trying to make my life harder now. Even before they nominated me, I felt like I had so many expectations depending on me. They made me queen of the world. I'm still working with some of the same people who expected Mariemaia to kill me, and now I have to impress them or risk losing everything."

"I hear a lot of stuff about everyone else. You're paying me to listen to things about you. Why can't you sleep?"

"I'm stressed out!" the Minister shouted, clasping her hands to her face and rubbing her eyes. "All I can think about is what's going on up there. How can we handle this when no one even knows? How can we keep this secret? People are dying!" she added, pushing herself up out of her chair and moving toward the bookcases lining the back wall.

"People are dying," she repeated, her fingers stroking the bindings of the familiar titles, "people are dying and I can't do a thing about it. This is my job. I'm supposed to protect people. To keep the peace. To keep things like this from happening. I'm failing at the one thing I'm supposed to do with my life." Relena turned back towards Middie, tears threatening to fall down her face. "I feel completely useless," she said, finally letting loose a sob and turning her back on her audience.

Middie sat and stared for a moment before getting up and putting an arm around her friend's shoulders. "Relena, come here," she said gently, pulling the woman into a hug. "It's not your fault. None of this is your fault. You're not personally responsible for the actions and thoughts of everyone else! To think that way is just ridiculous and, as your doctor speaking, very unhealthy and unwise." Middie released the woman, pushing some hair off her face and wiping the tears from her cheeks. "You're not in this alone, Relena. We're going to figure this out. Trust me, Mingmei and I will meet with some others and come up with something. In the meantime, you need to just figure out you. We need to just figure out you. Okay?"

Relena nodded. "I'm trying, Middie, I really am. But every time I think about how this happened, I… " she trailed off, casting her eyes to the floor. Middie understood the woman's pain.

"Lena, go home. Take a few days off. Read a book, play the "delete game" on your computer, watch a movie, hang out with someone." Relena looked at her incredulously, gathering up her coat and bag.

"And no "buts"! It's the doctor's orders!" She called as Relena ducked out the door.

Hilde and Trowa sat quietly in the waiting room, Stephanie's quiet occasional typing or her answering the phone being the only noises they heard for a while. Hilde picked up a magazine and began to try to read; something about the newest popular nail-polish colours was splashed on the main spread.

"I don't understand how anyone could read about such pointless crap at a time like this," she muttered mostly to herself, tossing the magazine back down on the table. Trowa looked over at her, half smiling.

"Everyone can use a good distraction every now and again," he said, propping his one foot up on the table.

"Oh, yeah?" Hilde asked, surprised the generally stoic man was engaging. She decided to push her luck. "So, what does Trowa Barton use as a distraction, hmm?"

Trowa gave her another sidelong glance. "Why do you want to know?"

Hilde gave him a pained look and turned away from him. "I can't figure out what to say to Duo," she replied quietly, staring at the floor. "Everything I seem to say about what happened just makes him mad. I feel like we just fight all the time… I guess that's why I'm here. If I can't make him happy, I wish I could at least distract him."

Trowa sat silently for a minute, considering what to say. Finally, he turned towards her. "Hilde," he started, "nothing that happened was your fault. Duo is the way he is because he choses to be. You can't do anything about that. There's no sense worrying about it. He acts the way he does because he won't act on how he feels. He won't act on how he feels because he feels angry with Heero, and he can't take it out on the bastard because he disappeared."

Hilde took a moment to absorb what Trowa had said. "I guess I never thought of it that way," she replied. "Trowa, do you think we're ever going to find him?" she asked.

Trowa was about to answer when Relena stepped out of Dr. Hart's office, bidding a hasty good-bye to Stephanie and walking past him with the same frazzled look on her face she always had post-therapy.

Trowa nodded to Hilde, shooting her an apologetic look before quickly following after his charge. Hilde sat, her eyes drifting to the star-struck secretary, and giggled at the awed look on the girl's face.

"You're Hilde Maxwell, correct?" a brunette woman called to her from the doorway Relena had come from. Hilde nodded, standing up. "Follow me, if you please," Amelie Hart asked amiably, leading the way back into her office. Hilde took a deep breath and followed, closing the door behind her.


	8. Meetings

_October, AC 199_

An elevator door slid open and two men stepped out, walking down the well-light corridor and through a series of winding hallways. Both knew the building by heart; it had been their place of work and study for years, where they spent most of their days learning everything they could about the enemy and how to keep them from disrupting their own precious utopia.

While Samuel Creed wasn't the brightest bulb, he had connections, something his cohort, Lawrence Lavie, couldn't deny was terribly useful thing. Every individual in their organization was useful; some had connections, others had money, some were, in themselves, indispensible sources of information. Samuel had so far held the key to their successes in hiding the recent revolts and purposeful attacks; the young man had several friends in the Preventers organization, informants, moles who were willing to play both sides.

One such man was waiting in his office, Lawrence knew.  _Hopefully he has something new for us_.

Sam looked at his mentor thoughtfully. He had never been this deep into the compound; his security clearances didn't allow him entry to the higher levels of what appeared to be nothing more than a simple office tower. They were now on the fifteenth floor, and the tower still had at least seven more floors above. Sam wondered what went on in the lofts at the top of the tower. He supposed it must be something important.

Sam's musings left him paying less attention to where he currently was, and when Lawrence stopped in front of him, he nearly bumped into the older man. "Sir, I'm sorry… why have you cleared me to come up here?" he asked, watching Lawrence reach into his bag for his office keycard. He found it, swiped it through the reader, entered his passcode and the two men stepped inside.

On the other side of the door, Sam found his answer. "Carl!" he said, crossing the room and shaking the hand of the man who had been waiting for them. "It's great to see you. Great to see you took us up on the offer!"

Lawrence smiled, closing the door. He was very glad, himself. Having a Preventer working for them, especially one so close to the President and other senate members, was indispensible. Seeing that Carl Jacobs was in one piece and had arrived safely on the colony, it appeared Une and her men still had no idea a double-agent was in their midst.

It as good news for Carl Jacobs, and he, in turn, had good news for them.

"I have some information regarding the Foreign Minister," he opened, taking the seat Lawrence had gestured to. Sam sat down beside him, staring at his friend as he fervently listened to the classified information. He never thought to question why it was being brought to his attention. Carl continued his debriefing, "Apparently one of her guards, a "Heero Yuy", abandoned his service about a month ago."

Sam thought it was strange, but not uncommon.  _Protecting someone so famous must be a lot of work_ , he thought,  _definitely not a job for just anyone_.

Carl shifted in his seat, still addressing Lawrence, who had taken his own seat behind an oversized wooden desk. "We didn't think too much of it, everyone takes leaves now and again for personal reasons, or whatever. Problem was, this Yuy guy didn't just leave. He didn't sign off, he just disappeared. Une was convinced he went rogue or something."

Lawrence was intrigued. "How can you be so sure? Aren't you too far under her? I wasn't aware you were on speaking terms with the commander…"

"Oh, you know. Word gets around. I don't talk to the bitch myself, she gets her underlings to boss us around." Carl laughed, shaking his head. "What she does all day, I'll really never understand. Aaaaaaaaanyways," he continued, doing his best to appear nonchalant, "this guy disappears. Une's freaking out like he's the antichrist or something. Relena's miserable for weeks. Figure they must have been having it on, if you know what I mean. So Yuy, they're looking for him. Finally my boss, Chang, and this other guy Maxwell, they find him at the spaceport in New Port. Turns out he'd been trying to flee to a colony. When they try to talk to him, he just turns around, straight up shoots them and takes off!"

Sam gasped. "What do you mean, he shot them? They're his coworkers, aren't they? I mean, we have footage of them outside of work, even… and he just shot his friends and ran?"

Carl shrugged and turned back towards Lawrence, who was now resting his chin on his folded hands, elbows resting on top of some assorted paperwork. "That's what I heard. The two of them were out of work for a couple days. Duo left after that, went on leave and hasn't been around much since. Chang's still around, pissy as ever.

"Problem is," he continued, finally getting to the point of his information, "is that they can't find this guy  _anywhere_. And I mean anywhere," he clarified, pulling some papers out of the attaché case he brought with him. "The guy's changed his name, to say the least. No records of any Heero Yuy besides the original anywhere, at least that I could get to. They never figured out what colony he went to… but I've got money on this one," he finished, passing the papers to his handler.

Lawrence looked over the documents, pulling a small pair of reading glasses from his desk drawer and placing them on his nose. They were all sealed under the same file number, dated just a few weeks previous to the current date. They outlined Yuy's escape, the circumstances of the young man's betrayal and his presumed location, which was obviously incorrect. Lawrence cleared his throat. "What makes you think he'd come here, Jacobs?" he asked, filing the papers away.

"Well, it makes perfect sense, doesn't it?" Carl said, leaning forward in his chair. Sam nodded, deciding he might as well add his opinion. If he didn't take any chances, he'd never climb the ladder in this business.

"I have to agree, Sir. The number of retired soldiers we attract suggests they must have a reason for wanting to be here. I mean, 'birds of a feather' and all that, right? Maybe the new regimes on Earth disagreed with this 'Yuy' character as much as anyone else who's left Earth to come here."

Lawrence had to agree. "You've done a fine job, Jacobs. Excellent research," he commended the young man, standing to shake his hand. "You know your way out, I presume? Laina has been asking for you, you know. You might want to stop in before you head back to Earth."

Carl laughed, running a hand through hair. "Yeah, that's likely to be my plans for the week. Lemme know if you need anything!" He let himself out.

Sam remained seated, absorbing the information he had just heard.  _Someone who used to work for Relena could be here, on this colony?_  He thought. He understood the importance of having someone like that around but it brought a new question to mind:  _What did Lawrence want with Relena Darlian?_

The gentleman seemed to understand where his ward's thoughts were wandering. "Don't you worry about the young Minister, Creed," he said, leaving his desk chair to sit in the now unoccupied guest chair. "I know you used to be familiar with the little Princess. This is why I've brought you here today. I've got a special assignment for you from upstairs," he continued, leaning forward to face the younger man. "We want to send you to Earth. We need someone near the Minister, someone we can make her trust."

Sam shook his head. "Why would you want to send  _me_? I mean, I've never done anything like this… and I'm not even a very good liar!" he protested.

Lawrence ignored his insecurity, continuing with his vague instructions. "It will be a fair amount of time before anything important occurs, dear boy. We just need someone situated there, in New Port, to keep an eye on things for us! This way, when you are needed, we will let you know, and when you aren't, you can fawn away from a nearer distance."

Lawrence smiled at him reassuringly. "Don't worry about it, boy, we have faith in you! Now, I know you know the way out. I'd go home and start packing right away. Your flight leaves tomorrow afternoon." With that, Lawrence Lavie opened the door to his office and ushered the stunned, confused and unsure young man into the corridor, closing the door behind him.

* * *

_October 20, AC 200_

Hilde followed the doctor into her office, closing the door behind her. 'Amelie' studied her carefully. The girl didn't seem shy, but was most definitely guarded, looking around at the décor in the room and the collection of books before settling down in the armchair provided. Two pairs of blue eyes met, and Middie smiled. She had heard a lot of Hilde Shbeiker from Relena over the years, and knew that anyone who could charm their way into being loved by the Princess was definitely in her own good books. Pulling out a pad of paper and a pen, she started her usual routine.

"So, Miss Shbeiker, Relena told me I might be able to meet you sometime soon, but I wasn't expecting it to happen quite this fast," she started, grinning. "I guess it serves me right for underestimating her powers of persuasion, hmm?"

Hilde sighed, smiling. "She didn't really have to… talk me into coming here today," she started, not making much eye contact. "I've been thinking about talking to someone for a while, but I don't have a lot of money and therapists are in a lot higher demand in space… If Relena hadn't offered for me to come in, honestly, I wouldn't have for a long time, I bet."

Middie shook her head knowingly, leaning back in her chair. "I hear you. I used to practice in the colonies, you know. Tried charging what I did here, had people lined up for a year in advance to get an appointment. Always made me feel bad, not being able to keep up with the demand… there's a lot of hurting people up there," she finished, looking at the girl carefully. Hilde's eyes remained on the floor, so Middie decided it was time to get down to business.

"So, Hilde –can I call you that? What made you come today?"

Hilde paused, considering how to begin. "My husband and I got married a little over a year ago. We were happy, before we got married. Things were really good, after the war ended and things settled down… We were both soldiers, back then, so we were happy to just get down to having a normal life, I guess." Middie looked up from her notepad, gesturing at Hilde to continue.

"Well, we hadn't really been too sure about the wedding and everything. We didn't have any money saved up for it, and Duo had really only proposed a few months before. Anyway… Relena came up with the whole thing… she paid for it and everything. I may never forgive her for that," Hilde added, half smiling.

Middie smiled along with her. "Well, it sounds like a great day! Why don't you tell me about it?"

 


	9. The Wedding

August, AC 199: Brussels

_Hilde looked down at Duo, eyes wide with shock. "Will I_ _what_ _?"_

_Duo shook his head, as disbelieving as she was. "Babe! Don't make me ask again, I already almost peed my pants the first time!"_

_She eyed him carefully. "Duo, how much have you had to drink, exactly?"_

" _Nothing!" he sputtered, running a hand through his bangs as he got up off his knee and sat next to her on the park bench. He had planned the night meticulously. For a man who was described as carefree (if not care_ _less_ _) Duo Maxwell had taken every precaution to make sure tonight would be perfect. He'd booked the reservation at Hilde's favorite restaurant in Brussels,_ Tangerine _, a ritzy place they'd only been to a few times, and even then only on Relena's tab. He got them a table overlooking the city's river, out on the patio. The weather had been perfect, nineteen degrees and not too humid, and the night was a perfect, cloudless one. After dinner the two had seen the local ballet, and Duo had choked back his complaints and even kept from rolling his eyes through all three acts. Finally, they had taken a walk through the park nearby the theatre, looking at the statues and picturesque gardens. They had arrived at the little gazebo, lit with tiny imitation candles, and he had "popped the question"._

_What he didn't plan for was her reaction._

" _So what's the joke then? Duo, this is just cruel. If I find out Heero put you up to this…" Hilde growled, standing up and balling up her fists._

" _Put me up to it? What the heck are you on about? Hilde, I_ _love_ _you!" Duo nearly shouted, nervous now, and scared._

_Hilde turned and looked back at him, her face softening, eyes welling with tears. "You mean it?" she whispered, raising her hands to his face._

" _Duo Maxwell never tells a lie," he replied softly, taking her one hand in his and putting the small velvet box in her palm. She opened it again, smiling broadly at its contents._

" _Duo…" she whisptered again, sighing. "Duo, it's absolutely beautiful. How on earth did you afford this?" she asked, looking worried._

_Duo shrugged. "Let's just say I had some help. Don't worry about it!" he finished, "Just tell me! Will you marry me, Hilde?"_

_She smiled, wrapping her arms around his neck. "I'd love to."_

 

* * *

Middie smiled, looking over her glasses at Hilde as she took her eyes of her notepad. "That's so romantic," she sighed. "He sounds like a real keeper."

 

Hilde gave a small, sad smile. "I think so, but lately…" she trailed off, unable to put into words what she had been feeling.

Middie interrupted the petite woman before she could fall into too much despair. "So what happened next?

 

* * *

_Hilde and Duo had returned "home" late that night. They both walked up to the door of Relena's massive home, Duo fishing for his keys. The door swung open just as he reached for the lock, revealing Relena standing in the doorway. They were both surprised she was still awake, until Relena darted forward and grabbed Hilde's left hand forcefully, holding it up to her eye level._

 

_Relena nearly shrieked before hauling her friend in the front door, laughing as she hugged Hilde and shouting between congratulations "I knew it! I knew it!"._

_Duo closed the door behind him and followed the two women in, noticing Trowa standing in the doorway to the common room, smiling smugly. The other man made the motion of a glass being drunk out of before nodding towards Relena, and Duo laughed. Relena looked toward Trowa and glared at him menacingly before taking Duo's hand and dragging both him and his new fiance into the common room._

_Relena slouched down into a couch gracelessly, tucking her feet up under her. Hilde sat down next to her while Duo walked over to the bar, pouring himself a drink. Trowa sat down to watch television, and Heero was sitting behind the bar, reading._

" _You man up, yet?" he asked, not looking up from his page._

_Duo laughed. "I got the woman I love to marry me, pal. You can't even get the one you love to look you in the eyes. Don't give me advice." The other man simply grunted, holding out his glass to be refilled._

_Relena bounced on the couch excitedly as she looked again at Hilde's ring. "Gosh, it's beautiful," she said, examining it. Hilde blushed, thanking her._

" _So, have you two thought about a date, yet?" Relena asked, glancing over at Duo along with her companion. Neither of them said anything, both shrugging somewhat._

" _We don't have any money saved for a wedding…" Hilde said quietly, "so probably not for a while."_

_Relena furrowed her brows crossly, pursing her lips. "Well, what if you could get married right now?" she asked, tilting her head slightly._

_Hilde looked at her strangely. "What do you mean, right now?" Duo moved closer, perching on the coffee table nearby the ladies._

" _I mean, what if, by some miracle, you were bestowed with enough money to, oh I don't know… get married this Saturday at the Gracechurch cathedral?" Relena said nonchalantly, turning away from Hilde to grab her drink off a nearby end table. Hilde and Duo gasped._

" _You… you didn't," Hilde said, looking at her friend incredulously. Relena cocked her one brow, grinning. "You did? No! You didn't! Relena, we can't just—"_

_Relena cut her off, "What, get married? You can't just get married? Well, you just got engaged. What were you planning on doing, being engaged forever? Get married before you go back to space," she began her argument. "I have the chapel booked, and I can have all your preparations taken care of. You won't have to worry about anything but getting your dress and tux sized and the colour you want your flowers to be."_

_Duo looked at his future bride, taking a generous sip of his rye. "Well, babe? Sounds like an okay deal to me."_

_Hilde shook her head. "Oh, I don't know, Relena… We can't ask you for this," she said, shocked at her friend's generosity._

" _Well, you didn't ask. That's the beauty of it. Consider it your wedding gift," Relena said, putting an arm around her friends' shoulders. "I want to see you two happy, and it's the least I can do. You've both been working like dogs lately. You deserve this," she added, smiling with her eyes as she got up off the couch._

" _That said, I'm off to try and sleep. I have an address to write tomorrow," the blonde woman mused as she began climbing the stairs to her chambers, "and now a wedding to plan!"_

 

* * *

Hilde stopped to catch her breath, having talked consistently talked for nearly half an hour. Middie let her pause, looking out the corner of her eye somewhat dreamily. "She's a pretty generous woman, isn't she?"

 

Hilde laughed. "Whether you like it, or not."

* * *

 

" _Whether you like it or not, you are_ _going to wear that suit_ _, Duo," Relena finished, standing in front of the change-room door. The fitter had finally finished his duties, asserting it would have been finished in half the time had his charge not spent most his time complaining and the rest squirming. Duo exited the small room and looked sheepishly at Relena, running his hands over his chest._

" _I feel like a penguin," he said, turning to look in in a nearby mirror._

" _No, you_ _feel_ _like pressed Italian silk," Relena said, turning him around, "what you_ _look_ _like is wonderful."_

_Dorothy Catalonia looked over her magazine at him from her perch on the posh, velvet upholstered bench in the corner. "I have to agree. This has to be the nicest I've seen you in… well… ever, I suppose."_

_Duo rolled his eyes. "You_ _had_ _to bring her?" he said, jabbing a thumb in the offending person's direction. Relena shrugged._

" _She knows the tailor and got you this appointment. Without her you would have had to wait months."_

" _Or I could have just_ _rented_ _a tux like a normal person," her reminded her, stepping back into the change-room. Relena clucked her tongue._

" _Absolutely not. Every man needs a good tux. Every married man needs at least two."_

_They left the store, Duo carrying his suit bag gingerly. Heading out to Relena's car, they hopped inside._

" _Take us to Chez Clarice please, Pagan. I've got to meet Hilde there. Take Duo home after, he's got a date with "the boys"."_

_Duo looked at her. "What are you talking about?"_

" _Oh, don't act like you don't know," Relena said, rolling her eyes. "You're the only one out of all of you that would_ _want_ _to go out on a Wednesday night, and you're dragging the rest of them with you."_

_Duo laughed, slouching back into the seat. "Guilty as charged. What, a guy's not allowed to have a little fun every now and again?"_

_Relena laughed, opening the door on her side of the town car as it came to a stop. "Some fun, not_ _too much_ _fun," she said, sliding out and closing the door behind her. Jauntily climbing the stairs, she opened the door to be boutique and beheld a slightly stunned but beautiful bride standing before her, staring at her own reflextion in a large 180 degree mirror._

" _Relena, dear! So glad you could see us," Clarice, a middle aged, honey-blonde woman cooed, kissing Relena on both cheeks and offering her a glass of champagne. "Doesn't she look marvelous?" she added, sweeping an arm towards Hilde._

" _Indeed, she absolutely does," Relena agreed, taking a few steps towards her friend and putting down her purse. Hilde turned slowly for Relena, raising her arms up to show the intricate, detailed beadwork on the ivory bodice, its flowing skirt reaching the floor and sleeveless top showing a tasteful amount of décolletage._

" _Relena, it's beautiful, but I—"_

_Relena cut her off. "Look amazing? I agree." She turned back to Clarice. "Stunning work as always, cherie," she said, taking a sip of her champagne. "Pack it up for us, we'll take it home tonight."_

* * *

 

_And so came the day of the wedding. The week had been a blur of flowers, fabrics, dresses, suits, colours and phone calls, Relena orchestrating the whole thing seamlessly, leaving a shaken and bewildered couple in her wake. Before they knew it, the big day was before them. Duo's "bachelor party" had left most of her personal guard incapacitated, but after going out for the night with Hilde and a few friends Relena herself was in no place to head into work herself, calling in a "personal day" and heading back to bed._

_Heading into the chapel at her queue, Relena took Heero Yuy's arm carefully, and the two began their timed and extremely awkward march up the aisle. Relena looked at Heero out of the corner of her eye, admiring his tuxedo and dark blue tie, exentuating his eyes. She smiled slightly, pulling him closer to her._

" _I know about what you did," she whispered to him quietly as they continued walking. Heero grunted, looking at her with feigned ignorance._

" _The tickets to Cancun? The house just down the street? You were very generous, you know. I was looking at that place for them myself."_

_Heero shrugged. "I had the money, and they need someplace to stay that isn't your place," he repled._

_Relena giggled. "What, Duo keeping you up at night?" she asked, looking ahead to wear the groom in question stood, hands behind his back, rocking on his heels nervously. Heero said nothing, releasing Relena's arm as they approached the altar and taking his place next to Duo._

_Finally, Hilde began her walk into the chapel. No one could get over how stunning the young woman looked, her short hair curled tightly and a bouquet of orchids and lilies filling her hands. Hilde looked ahead of her nervously,_ _don't trip, don't trip, don't trip, breathe, breathe, breathe_ _, she chanted to herself, taking each stride carefully and painstakingly. She reached the altar and stood next to her soon-to-be husband, smiling at him before they turned to face the priest._

* * *

 

" _I do," Hilde said, sliding the band onto Duo's ring finger._

" _And do you, Duo Maxwell, take Hilde Shbeiker to be your lawfully wedded wife?"_

_Duo grinned broadly at the woman next to him. "I do," he replied, sliding the band onto her finger._

_The priest smiled, holding out his hands. "I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may—"_

_He never got to finish his sentence, cheers filling the cathedral as Duo swept Hilde into a deep dip, kissing her passionately._

_The night passed with a flurry of congratulations, an amazing meal, terrific live music and enough wine and liquor to incapacitate a small army. Duo and Hilde lingered on the dance floor, swaying slowly in each other's arms. Most of the others had left for the night, Heero and Relena staying as they helped some of the staff of the reception hall clean up gifts and take the remaining plates to the kitchen. Heero waited until the staff were out of sight, before taking Relena's hand and guiding her out to the waiting car. Both of them had had too much to drink, and both were expected to be at work the next day._

_Duo and Hilde continued dancing, smiling to each other as they danced the night away._

* * *

 

"Well, that's certainly a story to tell the kids one day, isn't it?" Middie smiled, crossing her legs.

Hilde sighed again. "If we ever have any. At this point I just don't see it. Ever since Heero left, Duo's just been miserable. With everything that happened… I mean, the two of them were best friends. Besides me and the rest of our crowd, Heero's the only one Duo's been truly close to since he was a kid! That kind of betrayal.. it changed him… He's not the man I married, anymore."

Middie frowned, saddened by the woman's story. "There's no way you could get him in here, hmm?"

Hilde just laughed. "Not if my life depended on it. He's bound and determined that nothing's wrong, and he'll keep saying it till the day he dies."

Middie nodded her head, making another note on her sheet. "Do you know what happened to Heero that night? Why did he leave so suddenly?"

Hilde shrugged, standing up and heading towards the office door. "I really don't know, doctor. I guess Relena was the last one to see him that night… You'd have to ask her."

 


	10. First and Last

_October 31, A.C. 200: Brussels_  
Relena sat in the office of her home, poring over paperwork. The last few weeks had been long ones; full of arduous speeches, addresses, meetings and galas, and little progress had been made. Frustrated, she shoved the papers aside and reached for her glass of water, taking a long drink. The vidcom icon flashed on her nearby computer screen. Few people had the number, and Relena was curious who would be calling her at home in the middle of the day.

Jesse Linton's face turned up on screen. "Heeeeeey, Lena," he said, smiling gently as she began the video link. "I was hoping you'd be around. Called your office but they said you weren't in, and I didn't want to rouse too much attention."

Relena nodded, taking another drink. "Well, you found me," she said, looking back at the man tiredly. "What is it you need?"

Jesse furrowed his brows, his dark bangs falling into his deep brown eyes. "Who says I have to  _need_  something to talk to you? Can't I just care about how you are?" The woman sighed, conceding that his opinion was correct.

"Just going by the typical. Your brother only calls if he needs money, Middie only calls to harass me about seeing her, you only call if something's wrong. What happened, Jesse? And don't elaborate too much, I've got some place to be."

The young man noted the strain in her voice, but decided not to pursue it. "We've gotten some news from X-18997." Relena sat up straighter in her seat, giving her friend her full attention. "It appears they're planning some kind of attack, probably aimed at Quatre again."

Relena sighed forcefully, rubbing a hand on her face. "Just like before…" she said, glancing away from the screen as she remembered that tragic moment.

* * *

_October 198, Brussels_

_It had been months since Quatre had been elected as the Vice-President over the colonies, and so far he'd been having a hard time time with it. It was tiring work, and between visiting the civil colonies and making round-trips to Earth and back to be present for meetings of Parliament, as well as running his business, his personal life was haphazard at best._

_Upon his being elected, Dorothy Catalonia had taken it upon herself to become his 'personal assistant', taking over the day-to-day worries of the Winner Corporation, delegating to his sisters and helping him better understand the way he should approach his new position. He appreciated the woman's help, and over the years the two had grown closer, him easing her sharp demeanor and her teaching him how to use his money and power more effectively. The two had an informal relationship, neither willing to stay as simply "friends" or coworkers, but also both reluctant to take the next step._

_It was frustrating._

_His life had changed since 198, and he was still unsure about so many things: why he had been elected, who had nominated him, whether or not he even now_ _wanted_ _the position. Sitting in Brussels, Relena at his right side and Dorothy on his other, he waited to give his speech. He had been practicing it for weeks; an address he hoped would end the hostilities between the independent colonies and the representatives from Earth. Relena turned to him, her eyes sunken, looking too thin and tired to even be awake. He could feel the tension radiating off her, but still she smiled at him, taking his hand to reassure him. He stood up, getting ready to approach the podium._

_A shot rang out, and suddenly Quatre was sure of one thing: he was going to die._

_Relena had nearly screamed, standing to rush to Quatre's side as he fell, the bullet entering and exiting his chest right before their eyes. Dorothy was faster, and she grabbed Relena by the arm, gripped hard, and hauled the other woman off the stage and behind the surrounding curtain. The uproar coming from the other side of the curtain was intense, and Relena had to fight the urge to panic._

_Dorothy glared, standing up and straightening her dress before grabbing ahold of the slightly shell-shocked foreign minister and pushing her out the back entrance of the stage. "Get moving!" she shouted, jostling and forcing the girl down the back stairs. Relena, finally having had enough, smacked Dorothy across the face._

" _Touch me again, and we'll have a problem," she ground out, turning back around and running down the stairs as fast as her heels would allow. Dorothy, temporarily stunned, let the woman get out of arm's reach._

_Relena continued running, knowing the emergency exit well._ _Every day I go to work expecting to die, except this one_ _, she thought harshly, running down a dimly lit corridor, down another short flight of stairs, and threw open a back fire exit. The light entered her eyes from the afternoon sun, blinding her temporarily. She immediately threw her back against the door, closing it behind her, and continued running through the back parking lot. Trowa intercepted her as she came around the front corner of the Parliament building, pushing her back against the wall roughly and taking hold of her head between his hands._

_She could hear him questioning her, touching her, checking to make sure she had made it out unscathed. Relena could barely process what he was saying, mesmerized by the sight of Quatre's body being wheeled into an ambulance. She gasped, her hand coming up to her mouth as she pressed her back against the wall and started to sob. Trowa tried to comfort her._

" _He's going to live. It was a clean shot, through and through, they hit him in a rough spot but they said he'd live. Relena, we're leaving,_ _now_ ," _her bodyguard said, shaking her gently, and then guiding her quickly towards her town-car._

_Dorothy finally made it to the door, and, throwing it open behind her, saw Quatre's body and assumed the worst. "You bitch!" she screamed, turning toward Trowa and his charge. "You selfish fucking cow!" she continued, running towards them now. "This is all_ _your fault_ _!" the furious and strained woman cried out, now fighting with the guards who tried to restrain her, more for Relena's safety than her own. Relena sobbed, turning towards the car and slipping inside._

" _I gave you_ _everything_ _, you cowardly piece of shit! You've been hiding behind us all, and look what happened! All the money in the world won't save him! You hear me! If he dies, you're_ _dead!_ _" Dorothy finally finished, after being shoved roughly into another Preventer cruiser, the door slammed behind her._

 _Relena sat, silent, the entire ride back to the Preventer headquarters, knowing her friend was right._ _This is entirely my fault_.

* * *

A sudden beeping brought Relena back, and she shook her head slightly before checking to see what the sound was. An icon blinked on her vidcom screen, indicating an incoming call. _CREED, SAM,_  it read,  _ACCEPT, OR DECLINE?_ Relena almost smiled before turning her eyes back to Jesse.

"I understand, Jesse," she said quietly. "Gather everyone. We'll meet in Sanq. Tell everyone we need…  _I_  need them," she corrected herself, her eyes darkening slightly. Jesse nodded, smiling the same sad smile before terminating the connection.

Relena quickly clicked the still blinking icon, and connected the call with Sam. "Hello, Miss Relena!" he said, smiling broadly at the blonde woman. Truthfully, it was not the friendliest of circumstances, but Relena Darlian had grown on Sam Creed over the few months since he had moved to Earth. His mission was to know her life inside and out, and she had given him the perfect reason to intervene.

Acting as an official from the hospital, he showed up under the ruse of acting as a new "companion" for Relena after her initial suicide attempt. Although he could not understand what had driven the girl to the point of such reckless emotion, he could empathize now, understanding how difficult her life could be. Relena was a difficult woman to get ahold of, but he had managed to gain her trust and that of her guards, a feat that surprised even himself. Now all he had to do was get her to the colony, and—

"Is there something I can do for you, Sam?" Relena asked, tiling her head slightly, as though confused by his silence. Sam, thankful he was still at least smiling, laughed a little bit.

"Oh, no, Miss Relena! I was just distracted by how healthy you're looking today," Sam said, moving closer to the computer screen. Relena blushed slightly, looking away from him.  _She really is beautiful…_  he thought, before mentally slapping himself.  _Remember the plan…_  "I was wondering if you were busy later this evening? You see, I've heard of this great Hallowe'en ball at the Rushmore, and I thought-"

Relena cut the young man off. "Unfortunately, Sam, I am busy this afternoon. I've actually got someplace to be very shortly, so I've got to let you go," she said, apologetically. Typically she enjoyed a good chat with the young man, but Relena had an appointment she could not miss. "I'll call you back as soon as I get back and we can discuss the ball, alright?" she said, smiling at him as much as she was able.

Sam sighed, not letting his mask crack too much. "Alright, Miss Relena. I'll talk to you soon."

Relena terminated the connection just as Trowa knocked on her door, calling her. "Relena? It's time to go, Doctor Hart's expecting you soon," he reminded her quietly, not entering the room. Relena stood, took her jacket off the nearby chair and opened the door, locking it behind her as she joined her companion in the hall. "Who was that?" Trowa asked.

"Just Sam. He said there's a gala on tonight, he wanted to know if I'd accompany him, I guess." She elaborated no further, and Trowa decided it was best not to ask. Sam was the only man Relena had shown any interest in in years, and he and the others were determined to let the relationship play out. Relena was still fragile, and they tread lightly concerning anything with her personal life.  _We can't risk her life like that, again_ , Trowa thought, guiding the Foreign Minister down the hall and out into the grand foyer of her home.

The ride to the therapist's office was short and quiet, Trowa driving while Relena sat up front with him, reading over some papers regarding more red tape about the Mars Terraformation. Arriving at the office, Trowa opened her door and the two walked in.

The lobby was heavily decorated, tiny jack-o-lanterns, orange and black streamers, and large decals posted around on the walls and shelves. Even Stephanie appeared to be caught up in the spirit of the holiday, dressed up as Raggedy Ann, her hair pulled into two lose braids and her cheeks made up heavily with blush.

"Hello, Miss Relena!' she squeaked, fumbling as she pushed the page button. "Doctor Hart was just waiting for you, you can go right in."

Relena thanked the girl and proceeded into the doctor's office, closing the door behind her.

Middie stood before her, her hair restored to her original blond, her face hidden behind a cat-eared hood. The whole costume came together seamlessly, a full-body suit of some kind of black latex coating her body, a tail attached to match.

"Well, don't you look… interesting," Relena said, raising an eyebrow as she removed off her jacket and took a seat.

"Thanks, I thought it'd be nice to celebrate a holiday like a normal person. Gotta keep up with my 'cover', doncha know," she replied, winking as she sat down across from her friend. "So, what's with the emergency meeting?" Middie asked, putting her feet up on the coffee table in front of them. "Got a lot of bitching and moaning from Carmen and the others up in space, they're flying out today, apparently."

Relena looked somewhat surprised. "Jesse told me today he got wind of another attack being planned on X-18997. I wanted to figure out what's really going on there, and I have a feeling I'm going to need help doing it. Someone is targeting us, and we need to know whom. I've got a feeling I know who it is, but I can't go to the Preventers with a random name of someone they likely don't know exists."

"Why not tell Wufei? He's got his head up his ass, but at least he's useful. He could talk Une into getting you what you what you need."

"What I need are people I can trust. I'm not convinced all the Preventers are ideal employees, and I'd rather not involve Une. No offence," she quickly corrected herself. Middie just laughed.

"Absolutely none taken. Where did you think I got the pain-in-the-assery from?" Relena laughed along with her briefly before remembering the gravity of the situation. Middie seemed to come back to reality as well, grabbing her pen and notepad off the desk behind her and looking at Relena.

"Well, down to business. Hilde told me some interesting things about her wedding," she began, watching her patient stiffen as she mentioned the day. "She said you've got something to tell me about that night, something that could explain why you're here, talking to me."

Relena narrowed her eyes. "I'm not here to talk to  _Dr. Hart_ ," she replied tartly.

"If it makes you feel more in line, I could put the glasses on," Middie replied hotly. "You're going to talk to me, whether you like it, or not."

Relena scoffed, folding her hands in her lap. "Middie, I've been trained my whole life at keeping things to myself. Try me."

"You were the last person to see Heero Yuy. The police don't know, but Hilde does. You're lucky she kept your secret this long, otherwise they would have interrogated you over it for weeks, and you'd likely be dead instead of sitting in this office. I think one appointment telling me exactly what the hell happened that night is a lot better than me having to explain it to your little guard dog," Middie said threateningly, pointing her pen toward the lobby.

Relena stared at her friend in shock, her blue eyes wide open and unblinking.

"Relena, you have to tell me. We know he tried to kill your guards; he shot down his own friends! What if he's the one who tried to kill Quatre? What if he's the one Jesse's worried about? What if he comes back to finish the job? Anything you could tell me will help us." Middie looked at her friend as deploringly as she could through the mask. "Tell me, Relena. You have to tell me."

Relena sat still, silent for a few moments, digging to a place in her mind she had kept locked away, buried deep where she had hoped never to find them again.

"Fine," she whispered. "I'll tell you what happened that night."

* * *

_Relena stood arm-in-arm with Heero, walking down the aisle of the cathedral, keeping perfect time with the musicians._

" _I know what you did," Relena said coyly, using the hand that wasn't holding Heero to straighten the skirt her deep blue dress. It was tighter than she was used to, but she had conceded to allow Hilde to choose the styles and colours of the dresses, bouquets and decorations, and so she had ended up shoehorned into a floor-length, sleeveless gown, her shoulders covered by the wide straps, the bodice cut low and squeezing tight around her waist and hips before falling loosely to the floor. Heero was mesmerized temporarily, taking in her form, before shrugging off her instigation._

" _The tickets to Cancun? The house just down the street? You were very generous, you know. I was looking at that place for them, myself."_

_Heero didn't seem surprised. She had already set up Trowa and Wufei in the city, ensuring they were safe and invisible. They didn't mind the way they lived, but something about it didn't sit well with Heero, so she had avoided making any plans or arrangements for him._

" _I had the money, and they need someplace to stay that isn't your place," he replied quietly, still guiding her along the rows of pews._

_Relena laughed lightly, her spirits lifted from the escape of planning the wedding and seeing her friends so happy. "What, Duo keeping you up at night?" she asked. Duo looked like he was about to fall over with anxiety, a look on his face somewhere between panic and sheer horror that she'd never seen before._ _Gosh, I hope he doesn't say anything ridiculous_ _._

_The two reached the altar and parted ways, Relena taking her place at the right, waiting for the bride, Heero standing next to Duo, patting him on the back slightly and whispering something to him. Duo immediately calmed down, straightening his tie and relaxing visibly._ _I wonder what he said,_ _Relena thought to herself as Hilde entered the chapel and began her march._ _He always picks the right times to say something, and not to say anything_ _. It was a trait she admired. Relena was not the most even-headed of young women, and running her mouth had caused its own share of complications for her._

_Hilde approached the altar, dressed in the exquisite white gown she and Relena had chosen, and for a moment Relena wondered what it would be like to be in that dress, walking to meet the man she loved… Her eyes met Heero's, and she realized quickly she'd been staring at him. Blushing, she turned her eyes back to her friend and resolved to ignore him for the rest of the night._

_She was incredibly unsuccessful._

_The ceremony finished, the group began to get into their cars and head to the hall Relena had booked for the reception. Decorated everywhere with flowers, draperies and nearly overflowing with food, the few friends Hilde had invited piled inside, ready to let loose a little stress. Relena found her way to the champagne rather quickly, downing one glass before filling another. Sitting down at her place next to Hilde, she smiled broadly._

_Heero clinked his knife against his glass, causing Duo to nearly jump out of his skin. The room quieted quickly, a few people who, not knowing Heero well, were surprised he would draw attention to himself at all, let alone actually speak._

" _I wanted to thank you all for coming tonight," he began, standing. "We've been waiting for this guy," he said, pointing to the groom, "to make an honest woman out of Hilde for so long, we had to get them married within the month or we knew it might never happen." A few friends laughed, and Relena smiled, taking another drink of her champagne. Heero had a sense of humor, albeit a sarcastic, scathing one._

" _I've known Duo and Hilde for a long time, and I've never seen two people fight so much for so long and not end up killing each other. That's got to be a sign that fate's intervened, and I hope you two have a long and happy life together," Heero finished, raising his glass to the couple. Classes clinked all around, friends sharing in the toast, before being served their food and rousing up conversations. The meal was delicious, and was finished all-too-soon. Shortly after the cake was cut, more speeches were made, and couples began heading to the dance floor. Relena remained at the table, but jumped slightly when she felt a hand on her shoulder._

" _Dance with me," Heero said, extending his other hand to her. Relena nodded, somewhat dumbstruck, and taking his hand, followed him to the dancefloor. Dancing formally, Heero led her around the floor, and Relena felt her mind wander back to the first time they had danced together. It had been years since then, and Relena had felt herself grow more and more attached to the young man, as well as attracted. Looking at him now, Relena couldn't help but admire the man he'd grown into. The two were friendly at best, and it frustrated her greatly, but she was unsure how to take the next step._

_The song ended and the couple stopped dancing, Heero releasing Relena's hands. "Will you be here long?" he asked, watching her._

" _I don't see why not. My meeting doesn't start until the afternoon, so I imagine I'll stay until things wrap up here."_

_Heero nodded, seeming to get the answer he wanted, and headed off to talk to some of the other pilots. Puzzled, Relena decided he must just be concerned about how she was getting back to her home; he was on guard duty tonight, after all._

_Finally, after hours of intoxicated rants by Duo, toasts, dancing and cavorting, the guests said goodbye and headed home for the night, thanking Relena for her planning and their safe transportation home. Relena worked alongside the banquet hall's staff, clearing up dishes and taking down decorations. After most of the work was done, the staff left for the night as well._

_Relena fumbled on a ladder, slipping on one of the steps. She gasped slightly as she felt two strong arms seize her around the waist, lifting her and placing her down on the floor. "I didn't even know you were there… thank you, Heero," Relena said, her hands resting on his arms, looking into his eyes._

" _I think we should get you home," Heero said cryptically, his hand fixing a stray lock of her hair before continuing down the skin of her face. Relena closed her eyes, savoring his touch. Taking his hand, the two walked out of the hall into the humid summer air. Heero hailed their car, and, helping her into the back seat, climbed in next to her._

_His hands continued to rest on her, one stroking the knee nearest him while he stared at her, his eyes heavy-lidded and his breathing deep and heavy. Relena enjoyed his touch, only slightly aware that she was definitely still intoxicated, and only a bit more aware that it was absolutely insane that she even consider being with Heero Yuy._

_The thought stopped as soon as his lips met hers. It was a soft, gentle kiss, as though a question were attached. Pulling away from him, Relena looked into the young man's eyes, which were brewing with a mix of emotions she couldn't identify. Relena could only think one thing: a soft, gentle kiss was not at all the kind she wanted._

_Grabbing him, one hand on his face and the other in his hair, she pressed her lips back against his, kissing him fervently and deeply. Their breaths mingled, hands exploring bodies, Heero's touches and caresses eliciting small moans and gasps from the blonde woman as their car continued down the road. By the time they reached the home, the pair were nearly inseparable, tongues exploring each other's mouths, Relena undoing the buttons of Heero's tuxedo and loosening his tie without breaking the kiss._

_Fumbling for the door handle, Heero opened it, breaking the kiss quickly and stepping outside. Relena followed him, disappointed._ _I guess that was too good to be true_ _, she thought, sighing as she followed him up the stairs and into her house. Heero opened the front door, and she followed him in. Heero walked away from her quickly, taking of his jacket and hanging it over the banister before continuing his once-over of the home, walking upstairs. Relena felt crushed at his sudden detachment, but wasn't terribly surprised._

_Sighing again, she walked upstairs after him, heading into her bedchamber. She slipped off her heels and put down her small bag before continuing over to her vanity. Sitting down, she began to unpin her hair, tousling it and brushing it until it shone, running down her back in waves of golden blonde. She walked over to her large closet and unzipped her dress, slipping out of it. She'd worn her favorite negligee that day, a black lace brassiere with a matching pair of closely fitting panties. Relena loved the way a good set of underwear could make you feel. Even if you were wearing the most beautiful gown, if you had on ugly panties, you'd still feel like you were underdressed. Her mother had taught her that._

_A knock sounded at the door. "Just a minute!" Relena called, reaching into her closet to grab a dark green satin robe. Tying it around herself tightly, she walked over and opened the heavy wooden door. Heero stood before her, and she let him in._

" _You're not supposed to come in here until I make sure it's secure," he said, almost chastising her. Relena rolled her eyes, closing the door in front of her. Suddenly, Heero's arms were beside her, preventing her from moving. When she turned around, he caught her just in time, pushing her against the door and continuing what she thought he had forgotten in the car._

_Their kisses became gradually more and more frantic, Heero's hands tracing the lines of her cleavage visible above the line of her robe, fingering the edges of the fabric. Halting the kiss for a moment, he pressed his forehead against hers, holding her head in his hands. Relena didn't waste any time, fumbling with the buttons of his dress shirt as his hands reached around her back, feeling along her shoulders and down to the small of her back, tracing along her hips before cupping her rear and hoisting her up into the air slightly, pushing her back against the door and pulling open her robe, the tie falling to the ground. Pulling the halves apart, he stared at Relena's figure. She blushed slightly, unsure of how to judge the look he gave her until he picked her up again and carried her over to the bed._

_She realized two things. The first was that she and Heero were going to have sex. The second was that she had absolutely no problem with that._

* * *

_She woke with the morning light streaming through her blinds. Relena groaned, her head and body aching from working muscles she'd never before used, and immediately regretted both forgetting to close the blinds and sitting up. She pushed herself out of bed, swinging her feet over the bed._

_Realizing she was naked, Relena gasped, suddenly recalling the events of the night past. She jumped out of bed, and realized Heero was no longer there. Looking at the clock, she wasn't surprised._ _It's almost 11 already,_ _she thought, running a hand through her hair. She gathered up a towel and headed into the bathroom, taking a scalding hot shower. Some blood ran down the drain as she washed herself, and Relena was in pain, but overall it still wasn't as bad as she had expected._

_Stepping out, she dried her hair, put on some plain street clothes and headed down to the kitchen, hoping to find some kind of breakfast. Her morning staff was back, welcoming her and starting to make her something to eat, but there was no sign of her guard anywhere. She walked into the common room, and Trowa was waiting there for her, reading the paper while he drank a black coffee._

" _Morning," he said as she walked in, folding up his paper. "How you feeling?" he asked, a coy smile on his face._ _Oh, god,_ _Relena thought frantically,_ _he knows_ _._

" _Fine, fine," she replied quickly, trying to play it off, running a hand through her hair and averting her eyes from his._

" _You were pretty drunk last night," Trowa continued, taking another drink of his coffee. "Figured you wouldn't be up for another hour, at least."_

_Relena released a breath she didn't know she'd been holding before joining him on the couch. "I don't feel too bad, to be honest. Although I'm wondering where Heero went. Isn't he supposed to be taking me to the conference tonight?"_

_Trowa put down his drink. "Relena… no one's seen or heard from him since last night." Relena looked at him, not understanding where he was leading. "You were the last one to see him, I'm supposed to question you… but I won't. Either way, we can't get ahold of him, he never reported in this morning. That's why I'm here. We thought you were alone."_

_Relena shook her head, still not understanding. "He just left?" she whispered._

" _Looks that way. Relena, don't worry," Trowa said, putting a hand on hers. "You know how he is. He'll be back."_

* * *

"But he never did come back," Relena said, nearly in tears. "The only other time anyone saw him, he tried to kill Duo and Wufei. He just disappeared."

Middie looked at her friend, trying her best to remain calm and supportive while secretly wanting to cry along with the poor girl. "He broke your heart," she said, maintaining eye contact.

Relena started crying, burying her face in her hands. Middie walked over to her chair and, sitting on the arm, held the broken girl until she stopped sobbing. Middie kissed her on the top of her head, grabbing a nearby box of tissues and offering it to her comrade. Relena took two, dabbing at her eyes before looking at her friend deploringly.

"Please, Middie, you can't tell anyone," she said between sniffles. "If they knew… I can't go through reliving it again. Please."

Middie understood. "I won't tell anyone that doesn't need to know. Frankly, we're not interested in your personal life, just where he went. I hope, though…" she paused, heading to the door. "I hope that putting it out there makes you feel better."

Relena nodded, heading back out into the lobby. Watching the Foreign Minister head out to her car, she whispered to herself, "I hope even more that we find the bastard who did this to you."


	11. Escape

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Much longer chapter for this one, I think. It's worth it, I promise!

_October 31, A.C. 200, Brussels_

Middie started packing up her office, loading the papers she needed into her attaché case and powering down her computer. Knowing Heero's state of mind as she left could only help her, and she was determined to find him.  _You're not the only one who's made a life playing hide and seek_ , she smiled to herself. A knock on her door made her turn, slightly surprised. _Stephanie's already gone for the night… who got in_? She opened her top desk drawer, pulling out a small handgun. Placing it on her desk, she called "Come in," to whoever was waiting.

Trowa stepped inside the office, gun drawn, and closed the drawer behind him. Leveling it at Middie, he approached the desk. "Tell me who you are," he demanded, his voice even and practiced.

Middie smiled. It wasn't at all the reaction Trowa had been hoping for. "Don't play games with me, I know you aren't 'Amelie Hart', or whoever you claim to be. Do you even have a degree?" he asked, coming closer to the desk. Seeing her firearm on the surface, he disengaged the safety on his.

"Now now, No-Name, that's no way to treat a lady," she started, standing up from her chair slowly and approaching him. It was then that Trowa got an eyeful of her costume, all leather and latex and little left to the imagination. He backed away, still keeping the weapon trained on her.

"Don't come any closer," he warned, stepping away from her as she again approached.

"Why?  _Afraid_ , are we?" Middie taunted as she walked closer, backing Trowa against the wall, and held her hooded forehead up against the end of his gun. "You won't shoot me, because you shoot to kill, and if you killed me, you'd never know how I know you. Now put the gun down," she said, placing her hand on top of it. Conceding she was right, Trowa lowered the weapon and reengaged the safety.

"I  _do_  have a degree, a very good one, actually. After the war I needed something to do, and with my father's insurance I put me my brothers through college. The twins are still in, actually." She paused, turning back to look at him. "And you started working for the Preventers," she grinned. "I didn't imagine once you met Relena you'd be able to pry yourself away."

Trowa sat down in the chair next to where Middie leaned on the desk. "How do you know all this?" he asked. "There's no way Relena would have told you, she knows next to nothing about my life."

Middie pulled the hood and mask off her head, shaking out her blonde hair and looking at him through her grey eyes. Wheels began turning, and suddenly Trowa remembered a young girl, a spy, whom he had met years before. "Middie. You're Middie Une," he said, connecting the dots.

"Indeed, the one and only," she replied, surprised he was as calm as he seemed to be. She remembered Trowa Barton being practically silent, saying what needed to be and nothing more. Relena had kept her filled in on him over the years, after they had realized that he was her 'No-name'. "I'm here because I knew Relena needed help, and the only way I can get hired anywhere without being arrested is under a fake name."

Trowa looked at her strangely. "How did you know about her injuries? We made sure it stayed in-house, the press wasn't aware. How did you find out?"

Middie smiled, picking up her case and walking over to the door. "You're not the only one with secrets, nor are you the only one who gets paid to find answers," she replied cryptically before sighing on her way out the door. Trowa followed her, unwilling to end the conversation. Walking out of the office and to her car, she gestured to the passenger side door. "Get in. There's a lot you need to know."

* * *

That same night, Relena accompanied Samuel Creed to the 121st annual Grissholme Hollow's Eve Ball, an elegant masque ball held in a hotel just outside Brussels. Relena walked up the stairs to the hotel, accompanied by her guards, passing dozens of photographers and reporters asking question after question. Smiling her practiced smile and remaining silent, she waved before reaching the top step and being ushered into the lobby of the spectacular hotel.

It was hundreds of years old, kept livable by massive restorations that occurred every decade. The original tile mosaics rested in the ceilings, massive chandeliers causing them to dazzle. The floor was tiled as well, with rich red carpets laid out for its guests. Relena took the glass of champagne a passing waiter offered her and as she took her first sip, turned at the sound of her name.

"Miss Relena!" Samuel called, walking up to her. "You look ravishing," he said, taking in the black, strapless gown she had chosen to wear, from the low-cut bodice down to the intricate black-beaded flowers that sparkled on the flowing satin skirt. He bent down slightly and kissed both her cheeks before taking her hand and leading her into the main ballroom.

"Thank you, Sam," she replied, smiling. "Your suit looks very sharp on you, you should wear it more often." Sam smiled down at her as they continued walking, entering the ballroom. Dozens of couples danced, the string quartet in the corner guiding them around the floor in a slow waltz. Many others stood, conducting conversation, laughing over anecdotes, discussing business, sharing stories, and gossiping. Relena typically hated these events; as the foreign minister, she attended dozens of them per year, all of them a guise for the hosts trying to get her alone long enough to sneak in some hidden agenda or play favorites.

This time, though, she came merely as herself, and she was happy to have the chance to relax and spend time with her friend. As the young couple walked around, they introduced each other to acquaintances and coworkers, discussing everything from each other's daily lives to the local news to the weather.

"If you don't mind me asking, Miss Relena," Sam asked as he led Relena around the floor, "You seemed to be in terrible spirits when we last spoke. I'm glad to see you so much happier now, but what happened to make you so sad?" He looked into his eyes as he asked her, marveling in their clarity and the depths of emotions he had learned to read in them over their months together. He was disappointed when she looked away, staring over his shoulder.

"I had an appointment today, I had to relive some things I never wanted to think about again."

Sam frowned. "I'm sorry to hear that. But surely that can't be all…" Relena looked at him strangely, wondering where his question was leading. "I mean, you took quite a while to answer me the first time we spoke… it seemed as though you had gotten some bad news."

Relena was used to people trying to pry into her personal life, but she had thought Sam would know better. Still, she trusted him, and answered him truthfully. "There's been some reports that there could be another attack… a friend was just checking in to make sure I was safe." She smiled, hoping he would drop the subject.

Sam was not the smartest man, but he was no fool.  _If she knows, soon there won't be anyone who doesn't_ , he thought, his grip on her hand growing tense. She pulled away from him suddenly, concerned with his sudden change in demeanor and knowing something was not right. Relena was about to call over a guard when she felt a hand on the small of her back.

"Mind if I cut in?" an older man asked, offering her his other hand.

"Not at all, Mr. Lavie. I'll speak to you later, Relena," he said, dropping all formalities including his smile as he turned and marched away stiffly.

The two began dancing again, the man's movements fluid and experienced. "I don't believe we've had the pleasure of meeting before, Miss Relena, I'm—"

"I know who you are," she replied coldly, refusing to waste time. "You're Lawrence Lavie, the informal leader of the colony X-18997." Lavie smiled at the word 'informal', a calm, sophisticated smile that made Relena want to grit her teeth.

"Well, it seems there is no need for introductions," he replied suavely, not yet ready to release the woman from his hold. "I suppose you also know why I would pursue a conversation with someone so obviously determined to try and kill me with a glare." Relena, though embarrassed at his forward and pointed assessment of her attitude, was far from willing to soften her glare. Although there had been little to no evidence regarding the shooting, Relena as well as the other pilots were nearly certain members Lavie's colony had been responsible, and she hated that she was forced to remain cordial with the man who had nearly killed Quatre as well as cost her closest friends their secrecy. Dorothy's outburst had raised a lot of questions, and it had taken months before they could finally rest easy, knowing their secret meetings and undertakings were safe.

"You want me to sign the paperwork regarding your declaration of independence," Relena eventually replied as Lavie swept into a twirl under his arm. "It's not going to happen."

Lavie continued to smile. "Well, that seems quite biased of you, Miss Relena. You've done so for other colonies just like ours. In fact, ours seems to be the only colony you have yet to visit. I'd hate for anyone to think that their Foreign Minister was neglecting their job." Relena fought the urges both to stiffen in his grasp and to slap him as forcefully as she could. "I propose you come and see the colony for yourself. Live amongst us, see the service we're providing for these men and women, and then make your decision." The music stopped and the couple halted, Lavie still holding her hand.

"I know that you are quite busy this time of year, but after the unfortunate loss of your mother, surely you have few familial obligations this Christmas season. I checked with your assistant, she said you were free for a week over the holidays, I encourage you to join us then." Relena, stunned at the thinly veiled threats he made, said nothing. "I look forward to getting to know you, Foreign Minister." With that, Lavie kissed her hand and disappeared into the crowd, leaving her alone on the marble dance floor.

A young man approached her, looking somewhat concerned. "What'd he say?" he whispered quietly, offering Relena the glass of champagne he held.

"I have to visit his colony or he'll out me for being biased against him," she replied, rolling her eyes as she drank deeply from the glass.

Carl Jacobs smiled at his charge. "You looked uneasy, I wanted to make sure you were alright." Seeing her return his grin, he backed away from her quietly. "I'll be here if you need me. And I know it's not my place to say, but maybe you  _should_  head up there. You might just learn something we can use."

He walked away, grinning.  _And we plan to learn everything we can use from you, my dear_.

* * *

The night ended uneventfully, and Relena headed out to her car, leaning on Carl for balance. Her heels were painfully tall and the champagne she'd drunk was making her a bit heady, so once she got into her car she fell asleep. Carl woke her up gently and half guided, half carried her up to her room. She took off her shoes and sat down on her bed heavily, smiling at Carl. "Thank you," she said as she got up to choose her pajamas. She heard the door close behind her and assumed her guard had left for the night, out to patrol the grounds for her protection.

She thought terribly wrong.

Carl walked up behind her swiftly, grabbing her by the wrist and crushing her against him and grabbing the back of her head, his fingers tangling quickly in her hair. He crushed his lips against hers roughly, pulling her hair and forcing back the hands that tried to push him away. Suddenly, he pushed Relena back against her vanity roughly, touching as hand to his lip as she fell to the ground, shattering the glass of her mirror and spilling over various bottles.

"You bit me, you stupid bitch!" he roared, charging after her as she collected herself and tried to run out of the room. Hampered by her dress, she reached the door only just ahead of him, wrenching it open and running out the door.

"Get back here! What, you think someone's going to come save you? I'm the only one on duty tonight, no one else is going to hear you if you scream." He followed her through the palace, but she knew her home better than the bodyguard did, and she kept far enough ahead of him that he couldn't see her. Finally, he saw a shadow under the bottom of a door.

"Found you," he said, throwing it open. Carl's eyes opened widely as he faced down the wrong end of a gun.

"And I found everything," Wufei Chang said, gesturing with his free hand to the desk, covered in papers and reports. Relena stood behind him, her mascara running, a look on her face somewhere between fear and hatred. Carl's mind began racing, thinking of what he had been taught to do in this situation. Finally, he had the only answer. Turning and running out the door, he got partway down the hall before Wufei gave chase, and into the kitchen before he collapsed to the floor.

Wufei caught up to him and felt his neck for a pulse, Relena following slowly. "Cyanide," he said, standing up. "He's dead, just like the people who attacked Quatre." Looking back at Relena he shook his head. "After what I read, I couldn't blame him. He's a mole, someone on the inside of X-18997. If they find out he's dead, we'll lose our chance at finding out exactly what they're planning."

Relena looked at him incredulously, her eyes still weeping slightly. "Does anything prove they planned this? Did you find anything we could use as an excuse to get Preventers in there?" Wufei shook his head, sorry that he hadn't.

"Fine," Relena said, steeling herself. "Then we're going to have to do this the hard way."

* * *

Middie and Trowa got out of the car outside her small apartment building. She ran her cardkey through the reader and ushered him in after her, leading him up a few flights of stairs to her modest apartment. Tossing her back down in front of the door, she continued into her home, still wearing the ridiculous latex catsuit. Trowa couldn't help but stare at her out of more than bewildering, admiring the catlike way she moved throughout the house. "Come in already!" she yelled, clanking around some dishes in the kitchen. He followed her in slowly, feeling like he was intruding. "You want coffee or something? All I have is instant, I'm not home a lot…" Middie said apologetically, her heels tapping as she walked around the kitchen.

"Whatever you have is fine," he said quietly, still taking in the situation he was in.

Middie stared at him a moment before smiling sardonically. "Relax, would you? I didn't bring you here to kill you, and even if I did, it wouldn't be with shitty instant coffee." She walked back past him and into the living room where she sat down, placing two mugs of steaming hot coffee in front of her.

"Why  _did_  you bring me here, then?" he asked, hoping for once he could get a straight answer out of the woman.

"Well, to seduce you and steal all your insider info,  _obviously_ ," she said, eyes smiling over the rim of her glass. Trowa sat back in his chair, averting his eyes from her. "Oh please, seriously, you pilots need to learn to take a joke. Wufei just about killed me when I used that one on him."

"You know Wufei?" Trowa asked, surprised. Middie nodded.

"Known him for a long time, actually, though not as long as Relena has. I guess that's why she trusts him so much. They went to boarding school together, you know. It's how Relena met most of us."

Trowa's brows furrowed as he tried to understand. "Who exactiy is 'us'?"

Middie took a deep breath, sighing slightly before starting. "I'm not supposed to tell you this. In fact, I'm not supposed to tell Relena's own brother, if you'd believe that. But I'm breaking the rules this once."

"Why?" her companion asked, still trying to comprehend what she was getting at.

"Because I think Relena is walking into a trap. Someone is clearly trying to get to her, someone on that colony."

"X-18997." Trowa stated as Middie nodded. "What do you know about them?"

"We have a few people on the inside, deep cover, pretty serious stuff. Apparently they screen everyone who wants to live there, they have to be ex-cons or soldiers willing to give part of their daily lives to "further the cause". It's practically a cult," she finished, taking another drink of her coffee.

"What's the cause? Do they want her dead?"

"I don't think so. If they did, they would have hit her last year and not Quatre. They want her alive, either for information or for influence. We can't figure out which. Either way, she's in danger. I don't want her going up there, but you know what it's like to talk her out of what she wants… what's worse is…" she paused, looking around as if checking to make sure they weren't overheard, "… I think Heero Yuy is on that colony."

Trowa was stunned temporarily, but Middie continued before he could get a word in edgewise. "I mean think about it. Ex-militia paradise, where he can work and live, no questions asked… seems like the perfect get-away to me."

Trowa could have cared less about Heero Yuy, so he asked no questions.  _After what he did to Relena, he deserves to have to hide_ , he thought angrily. "So, what do we do?" he asked. "You know Relena better than I do, if her mind's made up, that's generally it. Preventer believes she needs to go, too, it'll give them an excuse to be on the colony to check things out."

Middie looked somewhat scared for her friend. "I don't know, Trowa. I just don't trust it."

The two sat in silence before Trowa asked the only question he really needed to: "But who are  _you_?"

Middie smiled. "We're hundreds, all working as one. We work to support peace without being it, to bring stability without building it. We work from the inside, making sure that things move smoothly. For a while, we were really just there for each other, friends, comrades during the Alliance's rule, when things were unstable and unpredictable. We separated for a time, but we were always there when we needed each other… Now, Relena's called us back together for help. She started all this, she could talk anyone into helping her, I swear to god," she finished, finishing her drink.

"What are you called?"

Middie smiled, as if remembering a fond friend. " _L'ombre_ ," she whispered. "The Shadow."

* * *

_November, A.C. 200_

_The ride home with Wufei was tiring for Relena. Having given her speech to her secret comrades, she emerged from the chamber exhausted and very ready to go home. Most of the ride was silent, the two thinking deeply about the potential consequences, and rewards, of what they were doing. Finally, Relena spoke, burying her head in her hands. "What on Earth was I thinking?"_

_Wufei looked at her briefly before concentrating again on the passing traffic. "You were thinking you'd like to not die, and this was the best way to make sure that doesn't happen." Pulling up to a stoplight, Wufei let the car inch forward. He tended to have a lead foot, and being an impatient man didn't help matters._

" _This can't just be about me," Relena said somewhat sadly, looking out the window. "They deliberately shot Quatre, they had no intention of getting to me. I'm not in this for my own life or my protection. It's peace that's at stake."_

_Wufei had to agree. "If they have their hands on the kind of weaponry we think they do, we're in over our heads already."_

_Relena pulled the papers out of the case she had stored in the car, a mixture of blueprints, reports, emails and other correspondence they had found stashed in Carl Jacob's small office inside her own house. "Just how stupid do you have to be to hide stuff like this in the house of your enemy?" Wufei had said, disgusted. "I never would have thought to look here," Relena had replied, wondering more about what to do with the body than the paperwork. In the end, they had reported Jacobs to Une herself, who had shown up in the middle of the night, infuriated, and Wufei had debriefed her about the paperwork he had found. He claimed it had been a pure fluke, he had entered the office looking for Jacobs and, going on his instinct, had searched the drawers and compartments of the desk only to find that the man they thought was a loyal Preventer was truly a spy, seemingly working for X-18997. What he had wanted, what his aim had been they had yet to figure out, but with such blatant evidence of issues on the colony, Relena had only one option._

" _I have to go."_

* * *

_December 13, A.C. 200, X-18997_

Heero Yuy sat in his dimly lit apartment, scrolling through page after page of miniscule text, coded commands and instructions flying past. His hands moved swiftly and surely over the keys, entering required information and passcodes before finally finding the information he wanted. While the organization he formally worked for had more security than expected and definitely more than the Alliance and OZ had. He detected the file he wanted and read through it carefully, mentally tracking a few dates and key times.

After he was sure he had the information he needed he continued to connect to the Preventer network, hoping he could still gain access to their servers. Just as he was about to begin, a knock sounded at his door. Heero was unused to visitors; generally the only people who came to his home were children looking to raise money for school and religious affiliates hoping to convert him, but neither would be visiting late at night. Standing, he crosses the first level of his small, sparsely furnished townhouse and opened the door. His 'friend', Neil, stood in front of him, holding a tray of coffees and a bag of food from the local restaurant. Heero thought for a moment he must be losing his mind, thinking of people as friends, and Neil took the opportunity to walk through the front door past him and into the kitchen.

"Got a call from HQ," he started, passing a plate laden with food to Heero as he followed into the small kitchen. "Apparently they have something they need us to start working on something right away."

Heero looked at him, curious, before padding back into the living room. "They say what it was about?"

"No idea, said it's all in the email."

Heero quickly cleared out of the windows he'd had open earlier, not wanting to explain his life to his colleague. The life he was living was complicated enough without bringing his past into question. It had been difficult enough to explain to Lavie and the others when they had hired him.

" _Why would you leave the Preventers to work for us? Presumably you have a great deal of information on what we have planned; you at least seem to be highly informed of the risks involved."_

_Heero had grunted, folding his arms. "I have the information you need, and I'm willing to give it to you."_

" _Name your price," Lavie had said, leaning over his desk._

" _A new identity."_

The conversation seemed like a million years ago; the past two years had been long, and whether or not he ever admitted it, Heero was lonely. Being a soldier was all he had been raised to do, it had been easier living amongst those who knew what he had done and understood him for it. Here, though they may not understand him, Heero garnered respect and felt no need to relive the guilt he felt about his past. It had been a kind of relief for him.

Coming back to reality, Heero quickly opened up his work email and found the instructions from his boss. "Please review the enclosed material regarding the target and clear any missing information as soon as possible. Pick-up of target is set for 26 Dec, 200." Clicking the attached file, Heero inhaled deeply, nearly gasping. Neil came to sit next to him, sipping his coffee while he too reviewed the information.

_PEACECRAFT-DARLIAN, RELENA_

_AGE: 20_

_HEIGHT: 165 cm_

_WEIGHT: 48kg_

_HOME LOCATION: 116 SUSSEX ST, BRUSSELS_

_CURRENT INFO: Currently working as FM and advisor to the president. Key player in race for new presidency following resignation of Pres. Malone. Overall political views: claims pacifism, but will fight to protect weaker parties, including rivals. Worked alongside Treize Kushrenada, sister to Zechs Marquise. Possible romantic relationship with Quatre R. Winner. Was seized by private doctors and currently seeks professional treatment for PTSD and depression following two suicide attempts. Of fragile mental health, should easily be manipulated into following orders and agreeing to our wishes._

_PICK-UP PLAN:-_

The final section had been left blank. Heero knew why they had sent this to him and his partner: Lavie knew he had an intimate knowledge of Relena's personal schedule as well as the layouts of the buildings she frequented. In the end, it became obvious what they were to do: plan the kidnapping of the most well-guarded woman alive.

 _Relena…._  Heero thought as he reviewed the information a second time. He nearly laughed as he read about the relationship with Quatre, imagining Dorothy Catalonia ripping her hair out. Another point stood out to him vividly,  _when had Relena attempted suicide?_  There had been no reports about it on the news; had it not been for this debriefing, he likely would have had no idea. Putting the information aside, he focused on the task at hand.

Neil sat atypically silently, and passed him a coffee. "Lavie told me you used to know Relena," he started, treading carefully. He knew better by now than to ask too much about his friend's personal life, but when it was a matter of the success of the mission, he knew Caden would give up any relevant information, private or not.

Heero grunted, shrugging his shoulders as much as he could while still continuing to type. "I worked for her, a while ago," he answered, giving the barest and yet most true information than he could. He had done a lot more than work for her… he cut the thought off before it started.

"Well, that works for us. So how are we gonna get her off of Earth at a time like the anniversary? Might as well just go down there and get her ourselves." Neil propped his feet up on the table, ready for a night of planning.

"We don't have to, she's coming here already," he answered, taking his own coffee and drinking it, happy it was just the way he preferred it: black.

"How'd you find that out? Lavie told me she was considering it, but no decision had been made.."

Heero nodded. "It seems pretty recent, it was just added to her itinerary last week."

Neil's eyes widened before he laughed slightly. "Man, you've just been getting up to all kinds of trouble cooped up in here, haven't you? Gonna leave any work for me or what?" His dark eyes wrinkled with merriment before he settled back down on the couch, running a hand through his jet-black hair. "Alright so, how are we gonna do this then? She's found out a bout Jacobs, she'll be guarded up the ass now."

Heero considered their options for a few moments before starting. "She won't be guarded once she's inside headquarters, Lavie would never let them in."

Neil frowned. "Like she's going to walk in here with no protection. She's not stupid, and neither are her personnel. Her and Winner both practically walked away from the last attempt. We have to account for all the possibilities this time."

Heero nodded again, settling back into the couch, crossing his arms and lowering his head, deep in thought. He took out a sketching program quickly and started drawing a map detailing the first few floors of the large office tower the knew as HQ. "This area, here," he said, circling a set of rooms near the second floor. "There's one entrance, and one exit, separated by 4 interconnecting rooms. If we can get her into the first one without her guards, we could likely keep her in long enough to either knock her out and get her out the window or the exit door without them noticing. Even if they did follow, they'd have to get through these four locked doors, or run around to the other side of the building."

Neil nodded fervently, almost excited. "If we can keep the noise down, it'd be ages before they even noticed a thing. Good thinking, man!" he said, clapping the fellow agent on the back. 'Caden' looked troubled to him, and Neil lost his smile slowly. "Hey, man, don't worry about the girl. They just wanna bring her in to get information out of her. If she's smart she'll give it up and be outta here in a week." Standing up, he started to walk towards the front door.

"I'd stay, but I know how you love your  _alone time_ ," he said, almost laughing. "Fill in some stuff about personnel numbers and get that back to Lavie. Don't give me any credit either, you deserve for him to know what a bucket of brains you are." With that, he left Heero behind. He remained on the couch for several minutes after his friend left, wondering how much of what the purpose he'd revealed for Relena's kidnapping was true.

* * *

 _December_   _25, A.C. 200, Brussels_

Relena's whole 'family' was gathered at her oblong dining table, or at least those of whom could make the journey. Quatre and Dorothy arrived first, as expected, both being on Earth for the Anniversary celebrations. After the Eve wars had ended, each passing Christmas without the world at war had been marked by massive celebrations worldwide as well as in the colonies, brining a whole new level of festivity to the holiday season. Duo and Hilde came as well, following closely after Wufei, who left his makeshift family for a few hours to have dinner with his friends. Finally, Sally Po, Trowa, Une and Mariemaia had joined them. Samuel Creed felt honored to be invited, but declined, claiming he was visiting family in Canada.

So they supped together, enjoying fine wine, better food, and celebrating not only an end to the wars, but also to years of friendship. Once dinner had wound down, Une cleared her throat.

"I hate to be all business, but we need to discuss your plans for tomorrow, Relena. As much as I hate the idea of you going, I'll concede it could help us in fingering whoever attacked Quatre. Trowa, you'll be accompanying her correct." The young man nodded.

"Myself and my team will be on duty 24/7 while she's on the colony. She won't leave our sight, Ma'am."

"Good. You get the slightest wind of  _anything_ , and you get her out of there. I don't trust this 'Lavie' character; I know next to nothing about him. It's as though he came out of nowhere just in time to indoctrinate a colony and declare independence."

Relena, in turn, cleared her throat. "I know you have the best of intentions, Anne, but I don't think all the security is necessary. He might be shady, but Lavie wouldn't risk trying anything while I was there. He needs my signature on his declaration,

whether he likes it or not; I can't sign if I'm dead."

Une shook her head while Mariemaia listened intently, happy to be included in such heavy politics. Une and Relena had been grooming her over the past few years to continue in her father's line of work, and she had been waiting years to be included in more formal discussions.

"It's not just about their declaration, we can't ignore the blueprints we found with Jacobs. Even if this is just something they're planning, a cannon that size could annihilate anything or anyone standing in the way of their agenda. I can't risk it," Une replied.

The group finished the dinner rather solemnly, all her friends hugging Relena goodbye before they left.  _Well, thanks,_ she thougth to herself bitterly. _The least you could do is_ _act_ _as though I'll be back._

* * *

_February 14, A.C. 201, X-18997_

Relena was exhausted, cold, bruised and bloody. Secluded in the dark, she kept herself huddled in the far corner of the room, her arms wrapped around herself for warmth and comfort. For nearly two months she had been trapped here, forced to go through hours of interrogation, torture and punishment for refusing to cooperate with the men who kidnapped her.

Her visit to the colony had been fairly routine, meetings with local political figures, visiting hospitals, government agencies, and so on. Lavie guided her through most of the process, as though keen and confident he could prove he was providing the 'necessary services' to his citizens. Finally, he had greeter her as she arrived at the large, glass building he had claimed he used to conduct his official business on behalf of the colony, conducting trades, performing necessary upgrades to the colony structure, scheduling weather, and all other necessary functions the people would need to survive.

About halfway through the tour, Relena had started noticing odd behavior in the people surrounding her and her guards. Rather than greeting her, smiling, as they had before, the men and women she encountered in this building were sullen, even glaring as she passed. Two men began following Lavie and Relena as they progressed through the mazelike building, where he finally led her to a small, solitary door at the end of a corridor.

"Now, Miss Relena, if you would care to come with me, I can show you the plans I have drawn up for our declaration," he gestured for Relena to pass him through the door, holding his hand up for Trowa to stop as he attempted to follow her. "I'm sorry, sir, but I'm afraid I can't let you in. There's quite a bit of sensitive information I need to discuss with our foreign minister here, and I can't allow you to be privy to it."

Trowa shook his head. "No dice,' he had responded. "We were chosen by our government to protect its officals. She goes nowhere without us."

Lavie smiled. "A government chosen by  _Earth_. Here, we have our own policies, and one is that no one other than myself and Miss Relena are going to enter this room." Relena looked back at Trowa, putting a hand on his arm. "Don't worry, Agent Barton. I'll come right back as soon as I'm finished."

If only she had known what awaited her, she never would have followed the wretched man into his office.

Progressing through several more rooms, they finally arrived at what Relena assumed was Lavie's "central command". "So, Mr. Lavie, what was it exactly you wanted to discuss?"

Lavie had smiled from behind his desk, a hand behind his back. "Unfortunately dear, it's nothing I can get out of you here." Before she could react, he had forced a needle into her neck, and before he even finished pressing the plunger she had collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

She had spent most of her days in a semi-conscious state, dazed and battered by the beatings she encountered from the men assigned to extracting information from her. What they were after Relena truly didn't know, she had resisted every attempt of theirs to force her into revealing Preventer and government secrets, whether it be pain, poison or threats of death. She had been trained for this long before her time as Foreign Minister; with her father in such a powerful position, kidnapping was always a possibility, and she had steeled herself to resist breaking down.

Relena was slowing slipping, her ability to resist the call of freedom that beckoned. They often promised her she would be safe, happy again, able to live in the light of day, if only she gave them what she wanted. The few times she was allowed outside were when she was to be transferred to a different building on the colony.

She was truly trapped. Outside this room, most of the residents of the colony were on the side of Lavie; even if she were able to escape, there would be few willing to help her. Still, it was a risk Relena had to take; it was run, or die.

It had been clear the Preventers had either stopped looking for her or believed she was dead; there was no way they would have simply left her to rot in this prison. It was time to take matters into her own hands. Relena held her head high as two men dragged her out of her cell. They had stopped handcuffing her a few weeks before, believing her too weak to even attempt escape. Relena put her political acting prowess to work, stumbling as they led her up the stairs, crying as they led her out into the night, before handcuffing her to one of their agents as they let her go.

"Hey, you take the bitch by yourself tonight, I'm fucking tired," one of the men said, lighting a cigarette.

"No way, man. Lavie finds out, and we're dead. Walk with me to Deacon St., it's just a few blocks after that, I can handle it from there." The other man sighed, continuting to smoke his cigarette, occasionally blowing smoke directly into Relena's face, laughing. "Aww, what, sugar, you don't like it?"

Finally, they reached Deacon Street. Relena tried to use what she could remember of maps of the colony to figure out where they were; somewhere in the southwest quarter, not far from their Headquarters and close to a large plot of residential housing. It was Relena's only shot.

The other man left, patting her rear before he headed off, waving to his friend and laughing. The man holding her regarded her with mild disgust before continuing on his way, dragging her along the street. This late at night, there was little traffic, so Relena took her chance when she had it: seizing all the strength she had, she pushed the agent into the street, directly in front of an oncoming, enormous freight truck. The front wheels almost immediately crushed the man to death, and Relena barely moving out of the way of the wheel nearest her. She pulled her hand free and desperately reached around the wheel for the man's waist, where she found in his pocket the keys for her handcuffs. Grabbing them, she started to panic, the driver of the truck exiting his vehicle.

Gasping as she undid the cuff, she grabbed the man's gun and leveled it at the driver, scrambling up off the ground. "Come any closer and I'll kill you!" she practically screamed, adrenaline shooting through her veins, calming the massive pain in her shoulder from the hit of the vehicle and the weeks of beatings. The older man put his hands up, seemingly unbelieving about what he was seeing before him. Relena turned and ran away from him, sprinting as fast as she should. It wouldn't be long before they realized she wasn't arriving as she should, and Relena couldn't keep up her speed for long. Months of being locked in a tiny room had killed what stamina she had, and by the time she got out of the industrial district, Relena was panting.

She fought the urge to turn and look as she heard voices behind her. "There she is! Get her!" Knowing she was being persued, she bounded around a corner onto the first line of townhouses and began pounding on doors.

"Help me!" she screamed, banging on three sets of doors, rousing no one, before firing several shots at her pursuers and continuing running. At least one shot hit its mark, one man falling to the ground, another radioing for an ambulance. Hearing only one set of pursuing footprints, she continued to run, her adrenaline helping her push through the pain as she bolted to the second street of identical homes.

Halfway down the street she saw it like a beacon: a house with the lights still on, illuminating the street. While it made her an easier target, she believed the men still wanted her alive and wouldn't risk shooting at her. Taking a deep breath, she bounded up the steps of the home and began pounding as hard as she could on the door.

"Help me, please! Help! Help! Please!" she continued to scream, begging God or whoever had kept her alive and well as long as they had to keep doing it.

Suddenly the door swung open, and Relena was unsure whether her prayer had been answered: before her, most undoubtedly, stood Heero Yuy.

 


	12. Awake

_Feb 14, A.C. 201, X-18997_

"Oh, god," Relena said, wide-eyed, while she stumbled back down the first few steps. Heero stepped forward, looking down the street. He could hear the men running; they had only seconds before they were seen. Without thinking, he reached forward, grabbed Relena by the arms, and heaved her inside.

"No. No!" Relena nearly screamed, fighting against him. "Let me go, let me  _go!"_  Heero slammed the door behind her, surprised at how light she was. In the dim light of his front foyer, he could still tell it was her, Relena Darlian, now collapsed on his tiled floor. "Oh, god," she whispered, covering her face in her hands, looking as if she were about to disintegrate. "This isn't happening. This isn't happening," she kept whispering, eventually just laying down, feeling the cool marble against her cheek, tears flowing freely down her face. She curled into a ball, sobbing, while Heero locked the door behind her.

"Get up," he said, nudging her gently with his foot. Relena didn't move, groaning slightly while still crying, her body wracked with the sobs only someone truly broken could make. "Get up, or they'll hear you," he said again, crouching down to look at her. Relena didn't look at him, she just stood, slowly, looking as if she were about to collapse in on herself, before letting him lead her by the arm into his common room. "Go sit down. If you run, they'll kill you," Heero warned her, before turning back to his front door. Just as he reached it, he heard the knock, a sharp wrapping.

"Hey, did you see or hear anyone come by here?" his coworker asked, looking around as he stood on the front porch.

"Heard her, but by the time I got out here, she had taken off. Lavie's going to have your ass," Heero answered, shutting the door in the man's face.

"Some help, Caden! Fucking asshole,' the agent mumbled to the closed door before running off. Heero waited by the door until the man left, locking it again and turning off the porch light.

In the other room, Relena sat, catatonic, her brain simply unable to compute what had just happened. After months of being trapped away, years of mourning and torturing herself over the loss of this man, she ran straight into his arms. She started crying again, quietly, trying to listen to the conversation at the door. Relena heard Heero lie, and for a brief second allowed herself to hope before her conscience crushed it.  _There's no way he'll save you_ , she said to herself bitterly.  _You should have just let yourself die in prison._

Heero walked into the room and looked down at Relena. She was sitting on the couch,  _his couch_ , staring at the floor, hands in her lap. Heero could hardly believe it was her, mostly because of the state of her; her hair was matted and filthy, held back with some kind of string. Her clothes were in a similar state, full of holes, her shirt at least two sizes too big for her. Relena's once flawless skin was now covered in dirt and grime.  _What in God's name did they do to you?…_ he thought, before approaching her. When his foot hit the floor near her, her head snapped up, her eyes meeting his. Heero found himself unable to break the gaze, staring at her.

Finally, she looked away from him, her gaze turning to the view outside his patio doors. "Are you going to kill me?" Relena asked quietly, refusing to look at him.

"No," he replied, sitting down across from her, wondering what she was so preoccupied with outside.

"Then let me go," she said, for a brief moment her voice taking on its old, confident tones.

Heero sighed, raking a hand through his hair before pulling his laptop over to him. "I can't do that."

Relena lost her temper. "Like hell, you can't!" she yelled, picking up a dinner plate he had on the table and throwing it at him. "If you aren't going to kill me,  _let me leave!"_  Relena was hysteric now, overturning the coffee table and walking over to the patio door. She had it half open before she felt Heero's hands on her shoulders. "Don't touch me!" She yelled. Focusing what little adrenaline-fueled strength she had left, Relena closed her fist and hit Heero as hard as she could in the face.

Heero stumbled back, astonished, while Relena nursed her now painful knuckles with her other hand. Much to her chagrin, he started laughing slightly, rubbing his face where she had hit him. "You wouldn't get within a kilometer of the spaceport without getting caught. By now, this whole colony is crawling with people looking for you." He walked over, taking her hand and trying to make sure her bones weren't broken. Relena reflexively slapped him.

"Don't you ever touch me again," she growled, backing away from him. "If you do, I'll run."

Heero looked at her, still amazed she didn't understand. "You have nowhere else to go," he replied, trying to soften her demeanor.

"I would rather be dead than stay here with  _you_ ," she retorted, her eyes narrowed. Heero took her insults impassively, hiding the hurt inside him that was beginning to resurface.

"I doubt that." He walked away from her. "If that were true, you wouldn't have bothered to escape." Heero opened a small storage closet and pulled out a large towel. "Here," he said, throwing it to Relena. "There's a bathroom upstairs, go shower."

Relena stared at him, the same resentment still stamped on her features. "Why are you doing this?" she asked. "You live here, you work for  _them_. If they find out I'm here, they'll kill us both."

Heero turned away from her, waiting until he heard her walk past him and up the stairs before exhaling a breath he barely knew he'd held.  _I have no idea_ … he answered himself.  _I have no fucking idea_.

* * *

Wufei sat in a nearly abandoned coffee shop, one of the only such places open 24 hours that was empty enough they wouldn't be noticed. He waited, watching the steam swirl off the top of his mug. It had been months since Relena had been taken, and still there was no sign of her. He sighed, taking a drink of his coffee before setting the mug back down gently.

They still hadn't found her, and it wasn't from lack of trying. Preventers had been formally looking into the disappearance for months, but with the colony being so aggressive, not to mention outside their jurisdiction, they were completely powerless.

 _L'Ombre_  was not.  _We have no jurisdiction,_  Wufei thought, a small half smile coming to his lips. Since he had met Relena Darlian over a decade before, their group had grown to hundreds, all referred by members of Relena herself, all highly scrutinized and approved by her, their leader.

She was still missing.

His wife came back from the restroom, holding Mai in her arms. The girl was unused to being awake so late, and rested head on her 'mother's' shoulder tiredly, her arms hanging uselessly by her sides. Ming sat down next to him, repositioning Mai so she could rest her head on her arm for support.

Just as Mai started to fall asleep, Jesse and Liam, the obnoxious twins, burst through the doors of the small shop. "Holy shit man, pick something far enough out? We thought it'd be next damn week before we— oh shit," Liam said, putting a hand over his mouth after he noticed Ming glaring at him, a hand over her daughter's exposed ear. "My bad."

"No kidding," Ming scolded, rolling her eyes. "Go back to sleep, Mai," she said soothingly, patting the little girl's hair.

Others soon began to gather, mostly residents of what had once been western Europe, a few who had flown in to get the necessary information for their cohorts in other regions. Grace Velasquez sat down next to Wufei, folding her arms, her lips pursed, as though she were in deep thought. They gathered in a group of tables, the lobby having enough room to pull them together and keep from disturbing the few other patrons there that late at night.

"Well, I guess we should start," Ming said, just as Middie walked through the door. Jesse immediately stood, looking threateningly at the intruder following her.

Wufei choked down his too-hot mouthful of coffee, too distracted to pay attention to the pain. "You  _told him?"_  he practically shouted, pressing his palm to his forehead.

Trowa stepped over and pulled up a chair behind Wufei, turning it around and resting his arms on top of the back. "She told me everything," he said, trying to ignore the dozens of narrowed eyes starting his way. "Your secret's safe, but you should have known better. We want to find her as badly as you do," he said, lowering his eyes. The last few months had been hard for him, he had been reassigned from his position guarding Relena. First he had worked on a task force on X-18997, trying to find the Foreign Minister, but they were quickly forced off the colony. They had tried to continue their work at Preventer headquarters, but running into such resistance from Lavie and the residents of the colony had forced them to give up.

 _No,_  Trowa thought.  _Not to give up. To take our time_. Secretly, he had been amassing information on the colonists living on X-18997, delving as far as he could into their daily lives and those of their higher-ups, including Lavie.

"Not cool, Dee," Jesse said, sitting back down. Liam just looked at his sister and shook his head, hoping she knew what she was doing.

"Everyone, this is Trowa Barton. He's a Preventer and worked closely with Relena. He was also a Gundam Pilot." Trowa looked at her, then at Wufei, who stared back at him impassively. "Relax," Middie said, smiling slightly at him. "I for one would rather work with the Preventers than against them."

"Right, because 'proper channels' have gotten us so far already," Dorothy snarked, crossing her legs and fixing her hair.

"Fuck proper channels," Trowa said. "We have to get her back. She's been there for months now, who knows what's happened to her. We need to get people into that colony now, not in six months when Une finally approves it."

Grace smiled at him. "Good answer." Trowa craned his neck to see her better, surprised to hear her voice among the group of people.  _Then again_ , he thought,  _Middie had said 'When you least expect it, we're watching_ ' _, so who knows where else the rest of these people operate_.

"Okay, enough of that excitement," Middie said, sitting down near her guest. "What do we know? Kat?"

Katarina Nemkov was a tall, lean woman, nearing her thirties and barely showing it. "It appears Quatre Winner was right in his assumption, Heero Yuy appears to be in space, under a pseudonym."

"Really? Where?" Wufei asked, abandoning his coffe and staring at her intently.

"We're uncertain. There's still hundreds of records to go through. We just did a straight search of anyone moving in and out of the colonies from Earth at the time he disappeared."

Jesse sighed, closing his eyes. "And that's just assuming he did it through any channel we can measure. If he did it illegally, we could be totally missing him."

"Then how can we know he's around at all?" Grace asked, skeptical. "Unless we've seen him in the flesh, there's just no proof."

Katarina smiled, her typical, dry, "holier-than-thou" smile. "I have an informant on X-18997, the same colony on which the Foreign Minister disappeared." She tossed an open file folder onto the central table, its contents splaying as it landed. "These are pictures of the man we believe Heero Yuy is masquerading as."

Wufei picked up the photo nearest to him, examining it. The shot was grainy, and at quite a distance, but there was no doubt in his mind it was his old comrade. He passed the photo to Trowa. "Look like him to you?" His friend nodded, and he put it back. "It's him," Wufei confirmed. "Hiding right under our noses the whole time…"

Mingmei shifted her daughter in her arms, careful not to wake her. "I think it's pretty safe to assume he had something to do with her disappearance then."

Trowa finally spoke up. "What makes you say that?"

"It was all too good," a stranger said. "Seamless. She was there, then gone. Someone had to know where she'd be, what to say to her, how to get her away from you.. everything. How long they had, what you'd do, and how to get rid of you."

"Makes sense. Someone planned all that, and now she's gone. Whatever he and Jacobs told them, it worked to a 't'."

"This 'informant', is he one of us?" Wufei asked, turning to Katarina.

She shrugged noncommittally. "Somewhat. Relena knows him, I think he was once a potential, but something changed his mind."

"Maybe someone had a better deal," Liam said suggestively, looking at her. "If they have anymore people who know Relena working for Lavie and his bunch of goons, we might as well write her off dead." Middie shot him a glare that she wished could kill.

"Don't you ever say that again," she hissed. Middie collected herself before speaking again. "Well, what can we do? If that guy, that guy on the colony? If he can find Heero, maybe he can find out what they've done with her."

"Way ahead of you," Katarina said, putting down another file. "This is everything we have so far. Don't you dare," she said, glaring at Liam as he went to pick it up. She nudged the papers toward Wufei. "You're an analyst. Take it, look it over, tell us what we can do with it. There isn't much, but we can hope it will be enough to justify taking more risks for."

The group sat in silence, mulling over what they had heard and seen amongst their own contacts. Jesse broke the silence this time.

"What's to stop the Preventers from just invading? I mean, there's no way in hell Lavie can claim this was anything but a kidnapping. Why can't you guys just storm up in there and kick ass? Isn't that what you're paid for?"

Wufei sighed. "You're forgetting their ace in the sleeve. Une's been having a few of us on research, so far all we can tell is that the weapon is likely biological, something like a plague or virus. They're manufacturing a way to spread the disease infinitely quickly. We can only assume it infects to kill."

Trowa backed his friend up. "They already told us if we looked for her, they'd kill her. It proves that she was alive, at least until then. They want something from her, more than just her signature. I think it's a repeat of Dekim's deal. Lavie likely thinks he can scare her or us into giving him what he wants: Power."

Several of the seated people laughed, making Trowa think he had said something wrong. Middie placed a hand on his. "Well, have they got another fucking thing coming."

* * *

Relena was still in shock when she found herself walking through Heero's house, up Heero's stairs, through Heero's bedroom. She fought the urge to vomit when her eyes settled on his bed, the covers tucked in pristinely, as if he rarely slept in it. Relena forced herself to keep walking, opening the far door and walking into a basic but well-furnished bathroom. She put the towel down over the edge of the bath and turned the water on, trying, at least for a moment, to forget where she was.  _This isn't happening. I'm just someplace. Free. Having a shower. I'll just have a shower, and get clean. Just get clean_.

Her thoughts comforted her, chanting along as though they were a separate part of her conscious. She put her hand under the water and flinched, her body trained to only expect the most frigid of water. Relena put her hand back under and let herself take in the warmth of the stream, the steam accumulating in the room, before turning on the shower and starting to take off her tattered and worn clothing.

Once her wardrobe lay littered on the tiled floor, she stepped inside the bathtub, pulling the curtain closed behind her. Relena simply stood in the stream of water for a while, watching the mixture of dirt, blood and sweat run down the drain.  _Just get clean_ , she reminded herself, and she turned around, letting the water run down her back, smoothing her hands through her hair. Relena looked around the shower; there were a few products littered around, none she would have personally chosen, but at this point she was far from picky. She picked up a bottle of body wash and squeezed a generous amount into her hands, lathering it before rubbing down her arms and legs. She repeated the process several times, rinsing, lathing, rinsing lathering, neurotically repeating to herself  _Get clean, get clean, get clean._  Finally, Relena felt satisfied, and washed her hair no less than three times before finally turning off the water and stepping out.

Opening the curtain, she felt herself snap back to reality.  _I'm in his house,_  she thought frantically, grabbing her towel off the floor.  _I'm in his house, still on this colony, and no one is looking for me._ Relena felt herself slowly unraveling, rubbing the soft cotton towel over her skin, tears starting to fall again.  _Why haven't they found me? I'm still here…_

Heero knocked on the door, startling her. "Just- just a minute!" she croaked, wrapping herself in the towel, scolding herself for being so polite. Relena opened the door and Heero was standing there, his body turned away from her, holding out something in his hand toward her.

"They'll be too big for you, but you need something to wear… just take them," he said, shaking the clothes in her direction. Relena snatched them out of his hand and slammed the door back closed on him, pressing her back against it. When she was convinced he had left again, she sat down on the edge of the bathtub and examined the clothes he had left her, a t-shirt, a large sweater and a pair of sweatpants. She pulled on the pants and the shirt, fighing the urge to laugh at the ridiculousness of her situation.  _I'm going to lose my mind_ , she thought, and then she gasped, looking at herself in the mirror.  _Oh, god, I've already lost it. I bet none of this is even happening. For all you know, this is just some amazing dream, and you're still back at home, in bed, waiting for Trowa to wake you up and tell you another seven hundred people need to talk to you today_. She smiled, looking at herself in the mirror, before laughing quietly.  _That's just it. A crazy dream_.

Relena laughed outloud now, pulling the sweater over her head and dragging Heero's brush through her hair. Satisfied with her dream-self's appearance, she reopened the bathroom door and stepped through, trying not to trip over the inches of sweatpant leg pooling at her feet. She frowned,  _He never used to be so tall_.

She walked back downstairs and headed to the front door. "Whoa, no," Heero said, catching her as she reached for the handle. "You step out there, you're dead."

Relena looked at him, an expression on her face that terrified him, somewhere deep inside. "Does it matter? It's just a dream." She reached again for the door, and he pushed her away more forcefully. She glared at him now, frustrated. "Just let me out, I want to wake up."

Heero looked at her, barely comprehending what she was saying. "This isn't a dream. Get back over there," he said, pointing to the common room, " _now_."

She looked at him, rolled her eyes, and threw her hands up, stalking over to the room she had been in moments before. A bowl of some kind of soup was on the dining table, and Relena's mouth began to water.

"When was the last time you ate?" Heero asked, watching her as she eyed the meal. Relena barely knew what the date was, and had less of an idea when she had last eaten.

"Days, it feels like," she said, marvelling at the realness of her dream feelings.

"Eat, then," he said, watching as she practically pounced on the food, "slowly!" he tried to add, but it was too late. Relena half ate, half inhaled the soup, savoring the feeling of it settling in her stomach. As she got about half way through the bowl, she felt her body begin to reject the sudden influx of nutrients. Looking up from her bowl, her stomach turned violently, and Relena dashed for the kitchen, a hand over her mouth. Heero barely had time to react before he heard her retching into the sink. He walked in after her and put a hand on her back, making sure she didn't choke.

Relena laid her head on the cool surface of the countertop. "Well, that was unpleasant," she said, barely looking at him.

"You can have more in the morning," Heero said, still amazed she hadn't tried to escape, or at the least attack him. After her shower, her whole demeanor had changed. He looked at her as she stood, her cheek resting on the counter. She looked thinner than he had ever seen her, the bones of her back visible where her shirt had ridden up, her wrists, hands and cheeks looking sunken and pale. She had a large bruise on her back as well, and several on her face, a large black eye visible on the part of her face he could see. An open wound on her head had reopened in the shower, and he grabbed a paper towel to try and quell the bleeding.

Relena stood up after a while, looking at him exhaustedly. "Where can I sleep? When I sleep I usually wake up."  _Usually,_  she thought.  _Usually that's how it works. You sleep in your dream and when you wake up, bam. You're back_.

"You can take the bed upstairs. I'll stay down here," he said, gesturing for her to go back to the room she had left before, barely comprehending her cryptic speech. Relena walked upstairs and went back into his bedroom. Walking over to the bed, she pulled back the covers, shedding the sweater she wore before she slipped onto the mattress.

"I'll be downstairs if you need anything," Heero said as she closed her eyes. "And don't try anything. I have a security system, you open any of the windows, and I'll know. Be very careful, Relena," he said, closing the bedroom door behind him.

It was then Relena knew it was no dream she was in.  _He said my name_ , she thought.  _This is a nightmare._


	13. A Little Secret

_February 15, A.C. 200, X-18997_

Relena laid in bed, tossing and turning, the ghostly white sheets tangling around her body as she protested lightly in her sleep. Downstairs, Heero woke, rubbing a hand over his face before sitting up. Momentarily he was disoriented, turning his head quickly before realizing he was asleep on his couch. "Leave me  _alone_ ," he heard again, and Heero's mind reeled as he remembered why he was asleep on his living room couch, and who was in his bed. Standing, he picked up his gun off the coffee table and stood up, examining the front and back doors carefully.

Heero groaned quietly before continuing slothfully upstairs, dragging his feet. He had been unable to sleep for days, and now Relena Darlian was sleeping in his bed. For a moment he paused at the top of the stairs, his brain fully awakening and furiously trying to decipher the feeling that arose in his gut as Heero thought, for the fifth time that night, that she was here, with  _him,_  in  _his house_ , in  _his bed_ … Shaking his head hard, he continued down the hall, peering into his slightly open bedroom door.

"Please… no," Relena said, pulling the dark blue comforter against her body, lashing out with her hands and legs. Her face was pulled into a frightened grimace, and Heero stood, immobilized, unable to wake her. He had remembered his nightmares from the war, how frustrating and disorienting it had been to be woken during something so fundamentally frightening.

He sighed, putting his handgun down carefully on the desk before picking up the chair and turning it around before putting it down quietly on the soft rug that layed under his bed. Heero sat down, crossing his arms over the back of chair and sitting down. His dark eyes drifted over to where the young woman lay, still struggling and gasping in her dream, and he rested his head against his forearm, waiting.

* * *

_January 15, A.C. 200, X-18997_

_Relena stared at the ceiling, her arms both chained to the walls of the small cell where she had been held for weeks, now. Rolling her eyes to the side, she licked her parched lips carefully, shifting her arms in their shackles as they hung over her head, engineered to ensure her discomfort._

" _I'm thirsty!" she shouted indignantly as she could manage, shifting her sore hipbones on the cold metal floor. The Foreign Minister_   _was a dull, sad image of her long-passed self, only more deteriorated since her capture by Lavie and his lackeys. Her hair was loose, dirty and lacked the luster it had held in years past, falling against her sallow cheeks. Relena knew she must look horrid; she felt as though she had been dragged over a gravel pit and left alone in the Sahara at night._

" _Hey!" she shouted again, hoping one of the guards would pity her. "Please, I need water!" Relena resorted to her most tested and true tactic, banging her shackles against the metal of the wall with increasing intensity, the sound no longer jarring to her, but clearly infuriating to whoever was on the outside of the heavy locked door._

" _Alright, shut the fuck up!" a voice shouted from the other side, a fist rising to bang against the outer side of the reinforced barrier. "I'll be back in a minute with food and water for you, and if you stop making that fucking noise you might get it warm." Relena halted her irritation, letting her arms fall limp against the chains. "That's better. I'll be back."_

_Relena sighed, her arms exhausted by even a few moments of exertion. Holding them continually above her head had already tired her muscles, which, she supposed, was their previous intention. After moments of waiting, the door finally opened swiftly, the light from the corridor blinding her as she stood quickly, trying to shield her eyes, Relena's arms tugging futilely against her bonds._

" _Here," the man said, walking closer to her and putting the tray of food down on the small table next to her. "That should tide you over for a while. And, the water you asked for, 'cause you've been such a good girl." Relena ignored the lecherous tone of the guard's voice, her body practically screaming at her as she waited for him to open her shackles. She took the bottle out of his hands and drank deeply and greedily, savoring every drop of water as it passed through her throat. Gasping, she put the tossed the empty bottle into the corner, barely noting its addition to the growing pile there. She was given four bottles a day, enough to keep her alive but unhealthy. Her only way of keeping track of time was watching the pile of plastic bottles grow._

" _There now, feeling a little better?" the young man crooned again, and for the millionth time, Relena felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end as she tried to back away from him, taking in the darkening of his eyes and his hands reaching out for her. She cried out, but it was too late; the blonde man blocked her into a corner, placing his arms on either side of her body, forcing a leg between hers so he could press his body against her. "I knew you'd come around. Been down here a long time, haven't you?" his hand brushing against the side of her cheek. "I'm sure a good, home cooked meal isn't the only thing you're hungry for."_

" _Leave me alone," Relena gritted out, kneeing the unnamed guard as hard as she could in the groin before running away from him and throwing herself against the door. Throwing her fists against it, she cried out again, her conscious telling her to yell for help, to save herself, but her present mind knowing that now, after weeks in this confinement, there would be no savior for her. The man cursed before coming up behind the blonde young woman, taking a handful of her hair and hauling her off her feet. Relena shrieked as she clawed against the man's hands, trying to free herself from his grasp. Ignoring her pain, he threw the prisoner against the low-lying cot in the opposing corner, his face screwing into a smile as he watched her struggle to sit up and press herself against the far wall._

" _Please… no," Relena begged, putting her knees up in front of her, pressing her hands against the wall. The man ignored her pleas, climbing onto the cot after her, forcing her down against the flat, tough mattress with ease. Relena struggled against him, hating herself for becoming so weak. Tears came to her eyes as she tried to shut out what was to come, her mind seemingly leaving her body as it continued to struggle, feeling the guard reaching to unfasten his belt._

" _Shut up, you stupid whore. You're going to get what's coming to you." Both Relena and the guard both jumped as the door slammed open behind them, a tall figure silhouetted in the bright light._

" _Get off her now," the bass voice commanded, the sound of a gun's safety being disengaged as the guard hauled himself off the cot and onto his feet. "Out, or you'll get what's coming to_ _you_ , _" the voice continued, pointing the gun nonchalantly at the guard as he scrambled to take his jacket before running out of the room. The man looked over his shoulder and down the corridor before continuing into the room, partially closing the door behind him. He sheathed the gun into the waistband of his pants and approached the cot slowly, holding a hand out compassionately toward the broken young woman. Relena continued to cry quietly, still shirking away from his tan hands as he took hers gently._

" _Relena, relax. I'm not going to hurt you." He took his hands and began feeling his way up her arms carefully, then switching to pressing and prodding her feet and calves. She winced unwillingly a few times, unsure of who the man was and why he had saved her._

" _I was sent here," he said, seemly reading her mind. His voice was deep, with a kindness that ran through it, making it feel like velvet in her ears._

" _Do you work for Lavie?" she asked, her voice quiet and rasping, causing her wrinkle her nose after hearing the intruding savior's smooth baritone. Relena's eyes were beginning to adjust, now, and she could see the man's dark hair obscuring his equally dark eyes, his tan skin disappearing into the uniform her usual guards also wore. He had the five o'clock shadow and under eye circles of a man who clearly longed to go home and take a deep sleep._

" _I guess," he finally answered, motioning for her to lift her arms. He ran his hands over her ribcage and finally pressed her closer to him in order to prod his fingers along her back. His hands temporarily stopped as she stiffened in his grasp, her breathing rate increasing dramatically as he pulled her closer to him, and she inhaled deeply. Recognizing the shape of his body, Relena pulled herself out of his strong arms before looking the visitor in the eyes, then inspecting his face.  
_

" _Why are you here?" she finally asked, pushing him away. "You already rejected us. You have no reason to care about me. You work for Lavie, you're part of the reason I'm here." Her blue eyes bore into his deep brown ones furiously, daring him to deny her._

" _I rejected them. Never you," he whispered, running a hand up her jaw, moving a stray lock of hair off her face. The gesture revealed a long, deep black bruise and the man gasped slightly as Relena pulled away, embarrassed._

" _Then why leave me here? Why work for him? I offered you everything, and this is how you repay me? Leaving me here to die?" Her voice took an edge of hysteria as she reached the final word, a shudder running up her spine._

" _To get you free. Today, Une gave a press release saying they're no longer looking for you. That they'll abide by Lavie's rules and assume that if you are alive, he will keep you alive if they let alone with this colony."_

_The man she now recognized looked at her sadly, the compassion in his face breaking through to her core and forcing up long-held tears._

" _No one is coming for me. No one's even looking anymore." Relena sobbed hard, pulling herself away from her companion and putting her hands against the wall. "I can't stay here, I can't!"_

" _Relena, please!" The man implored, moving closer to her and putting his arms around her. "Please, shhhh! If they hear you, someone'll be down here in seconds. Quiet, quiet…" Soothing her with a hand brushing through her hair, he held the crying woman against his chest until, finally, her breathing slowed. "There. Relena, you will get out of here. With the search off, security here will fall. Lavie doesn't seem to know, or care, but there are more here who are sympathetic to your cause than you believe. Get out of here, find someplace to stay, and I'll find you. L'Ombre will find you, probably even before I do. Just do that, and everyone will take care of the rest."_

_Relena nodded slowly, the gravity of the makeshift plan taking root in her chest._

" _But Neil, what… where am I supposed to go?" she asked, standing as Neil left the bed and began walking away._

" _Just trust your gut, or your heart, or whatever it is you go by. Hasn't led you astray yet." Turning to face the hallway, Neil grimaced as he heard heavy steps approaching. "I'll try to keep them away from you. I can't take guard duty, but I'll try and get guys down here who won't hurt you." He looked back over his shoulder, his dark eyes sparkling in the dim light. "I'm so sorry, Relena. Be safe, get out of here when you can. I love you."_

_And he was gone._

* * *

Heero watched as Relena's motions slowed, her arms and legs falling limp at her sides, her blonde hair splayed about her on the pillow. Heero shook away the memories that arose at seeing her sleeping, disheveled, wrapped in bed sheets, and stood up. Approaching the bed, Heero sat down on the edge carefully before he reached out and put a hand on Relena's far shoulder.

"Hey, wake u—" He got halfway through the sentence before Relena awoke suddenly, hitting him as hard as she could muster in her sleepy state, her elbow connecting hard with his head, knocking him over and farther onto the bed. Her eyes now open, but she was still massively disoriented, her mind reeling from the shock of being woken up and the dream that had disturbed her sleep. Looking down, she grabbed the first weapon she saw, Heero's handgun, and pointed it at him.

"Get away from me," she growled, leveling it at him, her balance on the bed shaky at best. "Get away!" Relena shrieked again as Heero reacted, trying to grab her by the legs. Realizing quickly that she had the upper hand, the young man jumped off the bed swifly and stood between her and the door. Holding his hands up slowly, he looked at his foe.

"I'm not kidding. Get out of my way, or I'll kill you." Relena disengaged the safety on the handgun and stepped forward on the bed menacingly. Heero had to struggle not to laugh, holding his hands above his head as he grinned, watching his one-time-employer shakily hold her balance on top his mattress.

Heero quickly tilted his head, staring just past Relena's shoulder and out the partially open blind, where early morning light streamed through into the room. Distracted, Relena turned to see what he had looked at and Heero took his chance to tackle her, knocking her off her feet and the gun out of her hands. Just as Relena caught her breath to scream, Heero clapped a hand over her mouth, using the other to try and keep her hands from clobbering him.

They stayed like that for some time, Relena struggling underneath Heero as he used his bodyweight to hold her down, trying to calm her. Eventually she quieted, tears beginning to trail down the sides of her face as she tried, less forcefully but just as persistently, to get the man off her.

"Are you going to scream?" he asked, looking at her. Relena narrowed her eyes, but shook her head. "Good," Heero said, backing off of Relena quickly and stepping off the bed. Relena also sat up quickly, drew herself up to her full height and, definitely not for the last time, struck Heero with a closed fist across his cheek bone. Heero cursed as he reeled from the hit, a hand coming up to the double bruise he was sure to develop from the past 15 hours of abuse.

Relena hissed as she straightened out her fingers. "I wasn't kidding. You better invest in a gun safe, because if you ever touch me like that again, I'll kill you in your sleep." With that she turned, took her still-damp towel off the floor near the doorway and walked into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

Heero continued to stand, stunned, as he heard the water turn on and the lock turn with a distinct  _click_.

* * *

"So, when did you meet Relena?" Trowa passed Middie the small white porcelain creamer, watching the look on her face as she stared into her coffee, the expressiveness of her eyes as she watched the whiteness of the cream swirl into the darkness.

"A long time ago. Before I met you, even, I guess," she said quietly. "We met when we were really young. She tracked me down in Brazil, I was doing small-time work then, mostly. I guess we musta been ten or eleven…" Middie smiled, looking into Trowa's eyes. "She set the whole thing up like she was some con artist or arms dealer or something. Offered me big money to do a job for her. I was supposed to met her in this park one night… And there she was, just sitting in the middle of the only decent green space in Rio, drinking a tea and waiting for me. We've been close ever since." She lowered her eyes again now, her expression melancholy. "We have to find her, Trowa. I can't imagine they'll keep her alive much longer, if she even still is… you know, alive…"

Trowa reached across the small table and took the young woman's hand, wrapping his fingers around hers gently. "We'll find her, Middie. I know she's alive. She would never give up, and I can't give up hoping that she's figuring something out. She's smart, she'll get out of there."

Middie sighed, looking over Trowa's shoulder. "We've got company… Well don't look!" she scolded as Trowa went to turn his head. She smiled contagiously, her nose wrinkling as she took her hand from his. "I'm just kidding. It's just Wufei and Ming." She waved over Trowa's shoulder to the couple and they approached the table quietly, waving off the barista as she approached. The young woman gave the table a strange glance, handed the pair their menus and hastily walked away, seemingly glad to avoid the stoic pair.

Mingmei groaned as she slid into one of the plus chairs, Wufei waiting as Trowa shuffled closer to Middie to accommodate him. "Long day?" Middie said laughingly, ignoring her friend's glare.

"You have no idea. I just got off my flight from Shenzhen. I swear to god, it gets worse every time." Mingmei ran a hand down to the small of her back, kneading it for herself slightly before settling back into a slouch.

"How was the trip, though? Find out anything interesting?" Trowa asked, looking at Wufei.

"Unfortunately, not in particular. We've got a lot of contacts there, but there's just not a lot of information coming in from any of the colonies to Earth since Relena's been gone… I think we're going to have to head up, personally."

"Go to space, really? Come on, man, I like having my feet on the ground. Actual ground." Middie took a drink of her coffee, widening her eyes cheekily as Wufei rolled his.

"We've got contacts in space, Wufei. We don't necessarily need to go… What would you tell Une? "Oh, you know, just a family vacation to a militarist colony to see the sights? I don't want to leave Mai alone that long…"

"We could go…" Trowa suggested softly, looking over at Middie, who was shaking her head vehemently.

"Dammit! Why would you even say that! You can't offer for me!"

Wufei laughed at the blonde woman. "What, are you afraid?"

"Fuck you, asshat," Middie answered spitefully. "I'm not afraid of any freaking plane, I just hate space. The only time I've been there I was sick as a dog the whole time, and everything's so crowded…"

"Aren't you from Paris? For crying out loud, you think a colony's crowded… Get a grip."

"Both of you just shut up," Mingmei said, waving over the shy barista. After the two newcomers to the table placed their order, something suddenly came into Trowa's mind.

"Hey, wait. You two are married, right?"

Mingmei looked at Wufei carefully, raising an eyebrow. "Until I kill him, yes." Middie howled loudly, banging a hand against the table. Wufei just rolled his eyes again, but Trowa noticed a slight grin forming on his friend's lips.

"Yes, we're married… Sorry I never told you… it was just sudden. I figured you guys either wouldn't understand or wouldn't really care. We got married so we could adopt a child of a friend, her parents didn't survive our colony's implosion. The hospital wouldn't let us take her unless we were married, so we just got a civic service."

"Well, that's not the way most shotgun weddings go," Trowa said before he finished off the last of his coffee. Putting the mug back down, he looked more pertinently at his friend. "Are you two happy? I don't want you going into space if you're worried about your daughter. She can't afford to lose two sets of parents…"

Middie put her mug down hard on the table, startling her companions and a few other patrons of the coffee shop. "Goddammit man, don't bring the kid into this. I'm a sucker for kids. Don't even talk about Mai, don't, don't, 'cause then I'll  _have_  to go." Middie held her hands up in front of her, looking away from the rest of her compatriots.

"Too late. Looks like the decision's been made, and not a moment too soon," a smooth alto voice came from behind them. Katarina wound her tall, thin body between several tables before arriving at theirs, tossing a thick manila envelope into the center of the table. "Passports, driver's licenses and your flight passes. We can't put you on Lavie's colony, because they've seen Trowa, and there's only so much you can do to disguise a face like  _that_." Looking down her nose at him, the dark-haired woman continued, "But I got you as close as I could. Jesse and Liam will meet you there, I've already sent them as well as some others. We're trying to space the traffic out, keep suspicion down, so make sure that you're leaving the colony in the same way. I don't like my good work being undone." With that, Katarina took the large sunglasses she had perched on her head and replaced them on her nose, and walked out of the small shop.

Trowa shook his head slightly, before turning to see Wufei and Mingmei smiling broadly.

"Oh you bitch. You did this on purpose, didn't you? Wow. Just… wow. Playing the kid card? Fuck this noise, I'm out," Middie said, picking up her bag and storming out of the glass front door.

Trowa sighed, pulled out his wallet and tossed a few bills onto the table. "Guess that's my queue. We'll keep in touch… I don't know what your channels are, but I'm sure she'll explain." He stood up and held a hand out to Wufei, who took it tightly.

"Speaking of explaining… anything you wanna tell us about?" The Asian man asked, cocking a brow as Trowa looked away without expression.

"Nothing to tell," he replied with the same tone, as if he was daring his friend to question it.

"Well, you're in good hands. Be safe, we'll expect to hear from you soon," Mingmei said, patting Trowa on his free shoulder. "Be safe."

* * *

Across an unmeasurable distance, Lawrence Lavie was having possibly the worst migraine headache he could imagine. Pressing his fingers into his temples, he sighed heavily, resting his elbows on his desk. A quiet beep sounded over his intercom before the voice of his secretary sounded. "Mr. Lavie, Neil Oppen and Caden Li are here to see you, as you requested."

"Very good, send them in," he replied, attempting to straighten his tie and sit up in his chair. The two young men entered his office one after the other, closing the door tightly behind them and continuing to stand just before it. Lavie studied the two young men, watching as they changed their stances, waiting patiently to be addressed. Neil stood with his hands clasped behind his back, moving his weight slightly between each foot with a slow rhythm. The expression on his tan face was, as always, inexplicably amused, his lips turned up slightly into a smile as he looked out the corner of his eye at his partner and friend, Caden. Lavie shifted his focus to the younger man, who stood with his hands at his sides, his feet spaced perfectly to his shoulder width, stock-still and completely unreadable. Smiling to himself, Lavie motioned the two men forward to the chairs in front of his desk. He had no idea how they managed to work so well together, but they got the job done, and that was not only all that mattered, but why he had called them to his office.

"I suppose you have heard by now that Relena Darlian has unfortunately escaped our premises." He practically spat the name, shaking his head slightly in disgust as he sat back in his chair.

Heero and Neil looked at each other, seeming to gauge each other's reactions. "Well, yeah, you kind of can't not hear about something like that, but I figured it was just hearsay," Neil said, looking back at his leader. "How did she get away?"

Lavie raise his eyes toward the ceiling in annoyance. "Unfortunately though she is naïve, she is not stupid. She seemed to wait until she was under the least supervision and got away before we could track her down. She also killed a guard to do it."

Heero swallowed deeply. "How did she do that? She couldn't have been armed…"

"The man was pushed under an oncoming freight carrier. She stole his keys and gun before taking off into the city."

Heero breathed in deeply again, slightly shocked, and made a mental note to check for a dislocated shoulder when he got home.

"That was bold of her, but where would she go? You think she's hiding out with civilians?" Neil asked, leaning forward in his chair.

"We have reason to believe someone is helping her to hide, yes. It's only been about twenty-four hours, but I've had agents scour the areas we suspect she could be. So far, we've found nothing."

"So, you want us to find her." Neil looked his leader directly in the eye now, his face a complex mixture of emotions that Lavie could not decipher.

"Yes. I believe you two are the best for the job. If anyone says anything about her, I want to know. If you find out where she is, I want you two to personally apprehend her and whatever fool choose to hide her."

Neil pursed his lips slightly before leaning back in his chair. "But what if there's just no signs? Or what if the person hiding her won't give her up?"

Lavie smiled slightly, a menacing smile that he could see brought his two prized agents to attention. "It's simple. If you can't get her to come out, smoke her out. If you can't get the family to give her up, kill them." The two young men nodded, standing at his gestured hand toward the door and began heading out.

"And gentlemen?" he added quickly as they reached the door. "If she will not come quietly, then kill her, too. She has long outlived her use."

 


	14. Loyalty

February 15, A.C. 200, X-18997

Relena sat in the dimly lit townhouse, waiting. It had been hours since Heero had left, giving her simple instructions: Leave, and I'll find you, and you'll probably be dead. The truth delivered so succinctly had left her rooted to the spot, legs tucked under her as she sat on the sofa, staring out the half-uncovered patio door at the small back yard Heero kept. It was surprisingly neat, with a few simple flowers and bushes growing along the sides of the yard, and an ornamental pond swirling in the back, fenced-in corner. Relena wondered whether or not there were fish hiding in the water, but didn't dare approaching the glass to find out.

The risk of staying in the home of her long-lost love was high, but being caught by anyone else on the colony would ensure the Foreign Minister never felt Earth beneath her feet again. Sighing, Relena relaxed back into the sofa, closed her hands in her lap and shut her eyes, willing time to pass faster… She startled herself and sat up quickly, her eyes open wide. Why, so he'll be back sooner? Rolling her eyes, Relena chose to ignore the sense of apprehension that welled up in her abdomen and settled back down into the sofa.

What seemed like seconds later, the door opened, and in an instant Relena was off the couch and hiding in the farthest corner of the room, somehow avoiding tripping despite the fact that the only light in the house came from the moon outside. She managed to knock a set of heavy books of an end table and they fell loudly. It wasn't until then that Relena realized Heero was not alone.

"What was that?" a curious voice asked, trying to gain entrance.

"Nothing," Heero answered quickly, clearly barring the man's access. The two stood in silence in the hallway for a few moments before the second man finally conceded.

"Fine, whatever you say. Look, you wanna meet up in the morning and go over some paperwork?" Heero gave a characteristic grunt before the door closed and the lights began coming on.

Relena pressed herself against the wall, horrified. She gasped into hands she had not realized were pressed against her mouth, a terrified sob escaping her lips as she hit the floor. "Oh, god," she whispered. "Neil."

"What's wrong?" Heero asked, walking into the living room. His hair was wet, and Relena realized it was raining, hearing the patter of the drops falling on the roof.

"Nothing. Don't!" She shouted, throwing her hands out. "Don't come any closer!" Relena stood unsteadily, pushing herself against the wall. Heero raised his hand in seeming surrender before he turned and walked into the kitchen, putting down a bag of groceries he had been carrying.

"Come here," he called, and Relena immediately resented herself for compulsively complying, but her hunger was more urgent than preserving her pride. She stalked into the kitchen quietly and stood in the doorway, causing Heero to jump as he stepped way from the fridge. Sighing, he continued loading the groceries into the fridge, putting a few items on the nearby counter. "There's electrolytes here for you and some vitamins. If you haven't been eating well you shouldn't expect to keep food down for some time." He looked around the kitchen momentarily before looking Relena over, who shivered under his scrutinizing stare. "What did you do while I was gone, sleep?"

"A bit," she replied quietly, not moving from her position near the doorway.

Heero continued to look her in the eyes a moment more before turning away again. "Good. You have to drink lots of water when you take these, otherwise they'll damage your kidneys."

"Like that even matters." Relena stared at the back of Heero's head as though she wished her glance were a destructive weapon. "You're going to kill me anyways, aren't you? And even if you don't, the second I get caught it's either back to prison or straight to my funeral. Who the fuck is going to care what my blood B12 level is?" Her now clean, long and wavy blonde hair hung in her eyes and she tossed it out of the way before pushing the overly long sleeves of the sweater she wore up to her elbows. Relena turned and began effectively turning Heero's kitchen inside-out, digging through drawers and cupboards, checking out appliances and gadgets before finally pulling out a large pot.

"What exactly are you doing?" Heero asked, almost amused.

"Making something," she replied coldly, filling the pot with water and putting it on the stove. It was not the same as the kind she had had at her home back on Earth, and she stared at the controls for a moment before Heero reached over and turned on the burner for her. Relena closed her eyes as his arm passed by her, close enough that she smelled the distinctive, clean smell of his skin. Kicking herself, she backed away from the stove quickly, trading places with Heero and rummaging through the refrigerator, taking a few vegetables out and placing them on the counter. Heero moved out to the adjoining small dining table and sat down, but not before taking his laptop computer out of its carrying case.

As he waited for the computer to boot up, Heero turned his dark eyed gaze toward the young woman still moving about his home. Relena had cut up the vegetables now and had put pasta in the boiling water, despite his direction that she not try to eat solid food. Relena knelt down to pull out a frying pan and Heero subconsciously admired the way her hair fell over her shoulder. It was then that he noticed the dark bruise lying there, as well as the one that framed her cheekbone.

"What happened to you when you were being held?" As soon as he asked the question Heero desperately wished he could take it back. Relena stood, put the pan on the stovetop and walked out of the room swiftly, darting into the main floor bathroom. Heero heard her slam the door behind her and winced as the sound of her struggling not to vomit reached him. Guilt washed over him temporarily, and he stood up, stirred the pasta, put the cut vegetables into the pan, and went to check on the young woman.

Just as he reached the door, Relena stepped out, wiping her mouth and sighing. "I'm fine," she answered before he asked. "Being… there… isn't something I want to talk about." Heero opened his mouth, but she held up a palm to him, looking away. "Ever". She flounced back to the kitchen and put the cutting board into the sink, pouring some detergent on it and washing it. Heero went and sat back at the table, frustrated, watching as Relena checked the pasta and stirred the vegetables again. She stuck one slice of red pepper with a fork and bit it thoughtfully, and Heero couldn't help but admire the way her lips looked as she chewed, the grace with which she did something as simple as cooking a meal... Shaking his head, he turned back to his computer, typing in a complex set of passcodes before finally entering the main operating system. Generally the laptop was only used for work, but Heero decided to check the local and global news instead.

He was somewhat aware of Relena pouring something and serving the food, but looked up in surprise as she placed a steaming bowl of the mouthwatering food in front of him. "What…" Heero asked, watching as she placed a knife and fork in front of him and took her own glass of the bright orange electrolyte drink to her seat next to him.

"Well, I have yet to see you eat, and I know how much you hate eating out so I figured you were hungry." She took a deep drink, closing her eyes as the precious fluids her body had been deprived of entered her body. "Consider it a small 'thank-you' for not shooting me yesterday. Or last night." She looked at him thoughtfully another moment. "Or this morning." Heero swore he saw her almost smile, but before he could get a good enough look her face turned hard again.

"I can't blame you, you know for keeping me here. Lavie must have given you a good deal, and I know this place is like a reservation for soldiers. There must be a lot of people you can identify with here." Heero felt her bright blue eyes on him as he ate. "I just can't believe that of all the houses on this colony, I ran right into yours." She laughed sardonically before pushing her chair away from the table and putting her glass in the sink. "It's almost disgusting, actually."

Heero stared into his bowl of pasta, not completely sure why her disgust seemed to hurt him somewhere inside.

"So, this is it," Trowa said, stepping off the shuttle staircase and entering the low gravity of the port, Middie following closely behind him.

"Looks pretty normal to me… Sure is quiet for a weekend afternoon, though." The two continued through the port and into the actual spaceport itself, towing their bags behind them carefully. "Sheesh. It's like a ghost town… I'm not liking the feeling of it."

"Me neither. Let's get to the hotel pronto." Trowa kept a wary eye on the few other people milling about the spaceport before he finally caught eye on a poster hanging on a nearby pillar. He casually ripped it of its staple and shoved it in his coat pocket before continuing after his companion.

"Excuse me, can I see your identification, please?" A young woman called after them as they approached the front doors to the small spaceport, and Middie smiled at Trowa.

"Of course, here you go." The stunningly blonde woman handed over both their passports and linked arms with him, staring up at his face in a completely fake but also entirely believable way, her eyes wide and full of adoration, her lips curled up into a small smile.

"Here you go. Everything seems to be in order, please enjoy your stay!" The spaceport worker walked away from them quickly, calling after another set of passengers from their flight.

"Sheesh. Glad we got these done now, aren't you?" Middie asked, shaking the passports at him before heading out the automatic door into the bright artificial sunlight. "Mmm, I love the smell of fake grass in the fake midafternoon. Come on, let's get back to the hotel, I need a bath like none other." Trowa simply followed after her, a perplexed look on his face. He was unused to such frankness of speech; even Duo and Wufei had learned some tact over the years, or at least Duo had learned the ability not to say every single thing that came to mind. Middie was completely unabashed and unapologetic, which had made the long, long flight to the colony more interesting than he had expected.

Middie had already hailed a cab by the time Trowa caught up to her and he took her bag, grazing her hand as he did so, before tossing it into the trunk and climbing in beside her. By the time they go to the hotel his eyelids were drooping; it had been a long time since he had traveled to space, and X-18997 operated on a different time-zone than Brussels. "Stay with me, baby," Middie said quietly, slipping on a large, dark pair of sunglasses. "We're almost there." Her lips curled up into a broad smile, and Trowa felt himself smiling back, although he couldn't place why. Something about how she looked at him was so familiar, but also so foreign, Trowa couldn't help but be captivated by her.

"Oooh, look at that," Middie said, lowering her shades so she could better see out the front windshield. "He might be a bastard, but he put us up in style. Where in the shit does he get the money for this stuff?" Trowa looked in the direction she did, seeing the towering building in the near distance, the glass of the windows shimmering in the sunlight, plants overflowing from planters placed all over the building, glass-framed elevators seen shooting up and down the height of the building.

"Yep, that's the Regent alright. Gorgeous building, that, pretty exclusive too. You're a lucky few to have a reservation. Enjoy yourselves, I hear the pool is amazing." The cab driver took the fare from Trowa and got out to help him retrieve their bags while Middie went inside and collected their room keys. Moments later the man's green eyes were roving over the enormous marble-floored lobby, taking in the fountains complete with live koi and the harpist playing next to the door to the adjoining restaurant. Definitely nicer than anywhere I've stayed before…

"Come on, we're up near the top. If I got us a penthouse I'm going to have to murder him… from happiness!" Middie jogged over and took her bags before clicking the button for the elevator several times, her heels clicking along the floor due to her restless feet the entire time. So that's what a 'happy dance' looks like, Trowa thought, and he smiled to himself again as he reached to put his keycard into his coat pocket. Remembering the poster he had tucked into it at the spaceport, his smile faded, and he walked into the newly arrived elevator with a look somewhere between dismay and deep thought.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Middie asked, putting a hand on his arm.

"I'll tell you after we've checked the room," Trowa answered, turning to look out the glass back of the elevator. It gave an excellent view of the part of the colony it faced, and Trowa tried to commit as many landmarks to memory as possible.

"It's prettier than I thought it'd be," the blonde woman remarked, putting a hand against the glass as she, too, took in the scenery.

"Most of the privately funded colonies are in better shape than the publically funded ones. Lavie must have money somewhere." The elevator stopped, and Trowa gestured for Middie to proceed, following her into the massive suite.

"Holy balls," Middie said, putting her bags down and walking into the bright, clean and unexpectedly lavish room. "This is awesome! Oh man, we have our own kitchen and everything! Oh wow, look at the bathroom, the tub is huge!" Middie continued her inspection of the room while Trowa headed inside, putting his bags down in a bedroom and coming out to look for her. The suite was big enough that it actually took him several seconds to find her. "Hey," she said, having calmed down slightly. "Tell me what's going on. The place isn't bugged as far as I can tell, and even if it is, it's not like anyone can just run in here without some kind of warning."

Trowa sat down next to her on the sofa in the 'living room' of the apartment-sized suite. "I saw these at the spaceport," he said, pulling the flyer out of his pocket. "It's Relena. She's escaped." Middie snatched the paper from him, reading it thoughtfully.

"I saw these, but I didn't get a chance to read any. I wanted to look like we knew what was going on… Shit. They must have these up everywhere by now. Her picture's on it and everything!" Putting the paper down on the coffee table, Middie leaned back and covered her face with her hands, rubbing hard. "That means this whole colony must be in on it. But if she got out of prison and they don't know where she is… Someone has to be helping her!"

Emboldened, she stood up and approached the provided computer. "Hey, you can't just use that for anything," Trowa said, approaching her before she could log in. She just looked back over her shoulder with an annoyed expression before continuing.

"I'm not stupid. If they'll monitor anything, it'll be the computer use. I'll get this set up so we can use it safely. Give me a few minutes… Actually… You might wanna go down and wait in the lobby. These," she said, absent-mindedly pulling two more room keys from her pocket, "are for Jesse and Liam. One's blonde, the other's brunette, they're twins. You can't miss 'em, trust me." Trowa took the keys and proceeded back out of the room.

"They work with you? With L'Ombre?" he asked, looking over the keys.

"Ha, yeah. Work is a nice way of putting it, mostly they just annoy me." Middie stopped her furious typing for a few moments before turning slightly to face him, her nose wrinkled up. "They're my younger brothers," she said, clarifying. "They work with me through L'Ombre, but mostly they just fight each other and get on my nerves." She waved a hand dismissively before going back to her work. "I'm sure they've been given your picture so even if you don't notice them, they'll know you. Just go down and wait, I'm sure they'll be hanging around." Trowa nodded once before leaving the apartment, but not before sneaking one last glance at the crumpled up poster on the table. She's alive, was all he could keep thinking. She's alive.

"She's alive?" Dorothy Catalonia nearly shrieked, and Wufei winced away before glaring at her.

"I'm pretty sure that's what I just said. She must have escaped from wherever they were holding her. We've got no reason to believe Relena would have left the colony, but they clearly don't know where she is. Either way, it's good news. It'll be easier to find her in a civilian place than it will in Lavie's."

Dorothy settled back in her chair, bringing a hand up to her chin. "Quatre's convinced Heero is hiding in space. What do you think the chances are that he's on X-18997?" Mingmei looked at her, raising a brow. "I mean, if someone like Heero Yuy knew Relena was roaming around that colony… there's no chance he'd be able to stay away."

"How does that help us? You think it's going to be easier to find him than Relena?" Wufei coughed out a laugh. "We'd be better off watching a dog chase it's tail than sending Liam and Jesse to find him."

Dorothy shook her head. "I won't argue with you about that, but you've got to understand what I mean. If we find one, we'll find the other, I can guarantee it."

"Hey," Carmen said quietly, sitting down in an empty chair. The Preventer cafeteria was quiet at this hour, and they were among the only people still milling about. "Got that message from Middie… Crazy, eh?" Wufei watched as her hand became a fist. "I can't believe they can be this obvious about trying to keep her on the colony. I wish we could just get in there and…" She sighed before turning her gaze to Mingmei. "What kept you two from going, anyways? You've always handled space better than Middie has, and there's always the risk someone will recognize Barton."

Wufei shook his head. "No one ever recognizes Trowa. He's just got one of those faces, I guess. Either way, we couldn't leave Mai here on her own."

"Of course. Well, who else do we have on the colony?" Carmen asked, leaning over the small piles of papers the group had arranged in front of them.

"Unfortunately not many. There's Olafson, he's generally reliable." Dorothy laughed, and Ming gave her a look to kill.

"It's too bad he can't handle a weapon to save his life. He's a pacifist. The best we could get from him is to get him monitoring the news and maybe some security footage."

"Fine," Ming said, irritated. "There's Rick and Laura Lane, too. They're both pretty seasoned, I think we could at least get them to cooperate with Middie and Trowa on this." The group collectively agreed, and the dark-haired woman set their file aside before sighing heavily. "And there's always Neil Oppen," she said quietly, and Wufei looked at her sharply.

"You can't be serious. Relying on him would be as good as shooting ourselves in the foot." He leaned away from his wife while Carmen tilted her head, staring at the others curiously.

"I don't get it. Who is this guy? I've never even heard his name before…" she reached for his file, but Dorothy snatched it away.

"It's not anything that concerns you," the blonde said coldly, tucking the folder under her hand. Wufei rolled his eyes and exhaled hard.

"There's no secrets amongst us, Catalonia. Get a grip." Carmen could practically feel the tension between them, but said nothing as she waited for Wufei to continue. "He was a possible recruit before you came along. Relena tried to bring him in before the Eve War, but there were… complications." Carmen opened her mouth to ask, but Wufei interrupted her. "He rejected the offer and essentially cut off contact with all of us. Something about the idea didn't sit right with him, apparently. Either way, we have reason to believe he's working for Lavie, now."

"Oh, god," Carmen said, understanding washing over her. "You think he helped them kidnap her?" Her eyes widened in horror before quickly growing dark with anger. "Who on Earth would do something like that? As if Relena could have done anything to deserve any of this…"

The rest sitting at the table remained silent, contemplating what the newer member had said, and knowing there was no way for her to be sure what she said was nowhere near the truth.

"But, but sir! Even if I had a way to contact her, as if she would trust in me now!" Samuel Creed sunk back in his chair, afraid, as Lawrence Lavie looked over the top of his reading glasses, his eyes severe. "She might be naïve, but she isn't stupid. Relena would know by now that I lead her right into a trap."

"Shut up, Creed," Lavie finally said, pushing his glasses back up his nose. "I've been hearing excuses the past two days, and no results. Relena Darlian is running around this colony with no contacts, no money, and no way out. If I find out you are the one hiding her, I'll kill you."

Creed winced again, shocked at the sudden confession of violence from his unusually agitated leader. "Sir, I would never…" He stopped as Lavie slammed a hand on the table.

"I know you are in love with her!" he shouted, and Sam paled. "Don't bother to deny it, it's been the running joke of the organization for months. She trusted you, there must be something you are hiding from us, something we can use. If you don't tell me everything you know willingly, I will drag it out of you myself." Lavie stood up menacingly, and Samuel gasped before scrambling to get away.

"No, no! I'll tell you everything!" he shouted, holding his hands out in front of his face protectively. "I'll tell you whatever you want to know, I swear!" Panting slightly from fear, Sam loosened his tie as Lavie sat back down, the older man's stare urging him to continue. "I have more information at home, it's locked away in a special file. I didn't know what to do with the stuff, I just figured it might be good to keep safe."

Lavie rolled his eyes, sighing. "By 'home' I dearly hope you mean it is on this colony." Creed nodded, and Lavie relaxed slightly. "Fine. I expect that file and your presentation to be here, in this office, within the next forty-eight hours. Someone on this colony is helping our poor Foreign Minister, and I need to find out who, now."

Sam stood, swallowing hard as he adjusted his jacket. "What… what will do you when you find her, sir?"

Lavie stood and turned away from his pawn to stare out the large window. "That is none of your concern, Mr. Creed. Two days, and I better have that information. Now get going."

Sam turned and practically ran out of the office, stupefied with fear and unsure of where his true loyalties lay.


	15. Worth 1000 Words

_February 21, A.C. 200, X-18997_

Heero snapped the top of the laptop shut, nearly shutting Relena's hands in it. "Step away, now," he said, and Relena completely lost her temper. Grabbing the glass topped coffee table, she threw it on its side gracelessly, dumping the empty dishes, books, and the offending laptop onto the ground. Far from finished, she walked away before Heero could react and grabbed the side of the tall, wooden bookshelf near the patio door, heaving it off balance and jumping away as it fell, dumping its contents onto the floor. She was breathing hard now; gratified by releasing the rage she had held in now for a week, staring at Heero as she waited for him to do something.  _Anything_ , Relena dared him internally.  _Do anything you dare_. The two stood here, Heero staring back at Relena impassively as she glared at him, her blue eyes taking on a sheen he had not seen for the past week, or years before.

Finally, Relena turned away, growling, and took off upstairs, enjoying the temporary strength her weakened body had regained from channeling her anger, the adrenaline pumping through her system blurring her thoughts. She reached the bedroom and began turning the place upside-down, throwing clothes onto the floor, turning over furniture, upending the trashcan. Finally, she came to the last remaining piece of décor in the room, a small nightstand. She ripped open the heavy bottom drawer and, holding it above her head, Relena threw it down on the floor, smashing it apart. She turned, almost heady with rage, and threw open the top drawer. To her surprise, it seemed Heero kept several trinkets in it; an old watch, a small, leather bound book, a small, velvet box she dared not to look into. All were thrown over her shoulder onto the floor, landing on the previously broken glass and wood with satisfying noises.

Finally, she reached into the back of the drawer and pulled out a picture frame, wrapped in a soft cloth. What she could see of the frame was silver, with decorative leaves weaving around it; it was clear that whatever photo it held was highly valued. She turned toward Heero, grinning at him as she held it above her head. Just as she went to throw it down, he stopped her.

"Don't!" he shouted, stepping forward, his hands out. "Put it down." His voice was calm, but had an edge that proved to her she had finally hit a nerve. She took the frame and turned it over in her hand, preparing to take off the cover. "Give it to me, now," Heero attempted to order, but Relena pranced away from him, ignoring the shards of glass and turned over furniture, keeping out of his arm's reach as she took off the cover and examined the photo.

She gasped as she realized it was a photo of them from years past.  _The wedding_ , she thought, looking at the dress she wore, its deep blue fabric falling off her body perfectly, her hand wrapped around Heero's as he had led her around the dance floor. The look in her eyes was one of adoration, and it infuriated Relena to think he had kept the memento of their last night together.

" _What_  is  _this?_ " She yelled, storming up to him. To her simultaneous chagrin and amusement, Heero flinched away, backing away from her. "What the  _fuck is this_?" She demanded again, practically throwing the photo at him. "Who the hell do you think you are, keeping that? How  _dare you!"_  Expecting no answers to the questions, Relena backed away from Heero tripping over the drawer she had broken moments before. Landing gracelessly on her backside, she pushed herself away from the man with her feet until her back met the wall. Laying her head on her knees, she began sobbing uncontrollably. "How could you," she said between cries. "I hate you." Heero approached her, putting the photo down on the bed, and knelt down in front of her before holding a hand out to take hers. "Don't  _touch me! I hate you_!" she screamed, breaking down again into sobs.

"Just kill me," she said, looking out at him between her fingers. "Just kill me. I can't stay here anymore, I c-can't…" Broken down, Relena was helpless, her body shaking and weak without the aid of the adrenaline. Her arms ached from abusing the furniture, and her heart ached from the sight of her looking so admiringly at the man she had once loved. The man she had always loved.

The man she still loved.

* * *

"Mid, mid.  _Mid_. Wake up," Liam said, tapping on the door. "Come on, lemme in already!" He looked up, surprised, as someone much taller and much manlier than he had been expecting opened up the door. "Ah." He smiled, holding out a hand. "So, you must be Trowa. It's a pleasure." He took the lithe man's hand and shook it hard before walking past him into the suite Trowa shared with Middie. "Sis, we got mail," he shouted.

"Yeah, I got it already. Shut up, you're giving me a headache," she shouted back from the bedroom before walking out, completely disheveled. Her hair was held back loosely by a band, stray strands tucked in odd directions by mistake. Her makeup from the night before was smudged, leaving dark rings under her slate-blue eyes, and she was wearing one of the hotel's robes, tied lazily around her waist. "Why the hell are you up so early, anyways?"

"We're on a different zone than Wufei; I figured it was probably a good idea to get up early in case he had anything for us." Middie nodded, taking a cup of coffee that Trowa had offered to her gratefully, noticing as she took the first sip how he had already tailored it to her liking. She smiled at the young man, taking in his form. He was wearing a pair of loose track pants, his toned and sleek upper body bared as he shook his long bangs out of the way lazily, waiting for her to continue the conversation.

"Well, what'd you think of what he sent?" she asked, moving past both the men and sitting on the plush white loveseat, flicking the television onto the news and lowering the volume to a barely audible level.

"I don't like it," Jesse said, mumbling through a piece of toast he held half of in his mouth as he wandered into the room, kicking the door open and carrying in several plates of food. He put them down on the kitchenette table gracelessly, clanging the expensive china and silverware against the glass. "I mean, the guy's an asshole."

"Who, Neil, or Wufei?"Liam asked, and the two laughed, hi-fiving each other. Middie rolled her eyes, throwing herself off the couch so she could check out the food.

"Either way, he might be the only hope we've got." She sat down, arranging the plate she had chosen in front of her and digging in, cutting up the French toast delicately.

"Hey, screw you! French toast was mine!" Jesse dove in to snatch the plate away, but Middie grabbed the plate and held it away from him, glaring as she chewed. The younger man groaned but grabbed another plate, sitting down across from her and starting in. Liam offered his choice of the two remaining plates, and Trowa chose pancakes and fruit. They ate quietly for a few moments before Jesse began again.

"Seriously, though. Dude's a dick. He don't wanna work with us, then fuck 'im."

"It's not that simple. Our visas are only good for three months, and we've got nothing." Liam stared into his plate, contemplative.

"It's only been a week. We're still getting settled in. Three months is lots of time. We'll figure this out, but I think Neil could help. He might help, if he knew... if he's working for Lavie, he has to know what happened to her. He could at least give us a timeline, or something… It's not like we're the only ones looking for her." Middie continued to eat, taking a cell phone out of her robe pocket and scrolling through some messages.

"I never really thought of that," Liam said, growing sadder. "God, what happens if they find her first? She got away once, there's no way they'll leave her alive."

"Shut up," Middie said. "I'm calling him, and he can't know you're all here. He fuckin' hates Jesse, he'd likely hang up if he so much as hears you breathe, so shut it, you little shit." Jesse tossed his head and sat back, but kept silent as the grave, all of them trying to listen in on the conversation.

"Neil? Hi, it's… Yes, I know. Look, I just… okay, fine. Sure. Well, I'm sure as hell not coming alone. Fine. Yes. No, it won't be Jesse." She caught her brother's glance and stuck her tongue out at him. "Yep. I really appreciate it. Tomorrow, at four? Okay. Fine. Bye." Middie tossed the phone down on the table, looking triumphant. "And that's what put bread on your table, kids."

* * *

A knock sounded at the door, and Relena jumped, startled. She stood up from the space on the ruined bedroom floor where she had been sitting the past few hours.  _Oh, God,_  she thought,  _what if he called them back. What if they're here to take me back?_  Her stomach clenched, and she carefully peeked behind a corner of the heavy drapes. Only one silver car was parked in the driveway behind Heero's black coupe, and she sighed heavily, hoping they would send more than one car's worth of men to take care of her. The knocking came again, and Relena left the bedroom and walked toward the stairs, creeping carefully to avoid being heard.  _If I can make it to the bottom without him hearing me…_  she plotted, but it was too little, too late. Heero was already standing at the bottom of the stairs, staring at her.

"Get back up there, now. Try anything funny, and you're dead." He patted his lower back suggestively, and Relena realized he had tucked his gun into his jeans. She sat down at the top of the stairs, resting her head against the enclosing wall.

The person outside knocked a third time, and Heero opened the door. "What," was all he said, and unexpectedly, the visitor stepped into the home.

"Nice to see you, too," Neil said, walking through the hallway and into the kitchen. "In case you've forgotten, we've got a job to do, and since you refuse to leave this house, I'm coming to you." Relena fought the urge to scream, clapping her hands over her mouth and frantically deciding whether or not to ascend or descend the stairs.

"Then let's go into the office. I was just getting ready to leave, anyways," Heero lied fluidly, reopening the door and stepping out.

"Oooookay then. You know, 'erratic behavior' is on our list, Caden," Neil said, his voice fading as he continued out the door, shutting it behind him. Once she was sure they had left, Relena ran to the front window, looking over the kitchen table as the car pulled out of the driveway.  _Caden_ , she said to herself, wondering what on Earth was really happening to her, and whom she could trust.

The thought stayed with her throughout the day, even though she tried to keep as busy as possible without making enough noise to arouse suspicion. Sighing, she walked sullenly into the living room and righted the coffee table, wiping it with a glass cleaner to check for cracks. Thankfully the large pane had withstood her onslaught, and she replaced the books and papers that had been on it carefully. After finishing, Relena continued cleaning, struggling and groaning to lift the heavy wooden shelf back onto its end, replacing the books on it carefully. Most were uninteresting to her, learner's books on programming languages, copies of old newspapers, and a smattering of novels. Leaving a few off the shelf, Relena decided, with growing fatigue, so start straightening the upstairs.

She entered the bedroom with a feeling somewhere between shock and awe. The room was completely torn apart, with wood, glass and clothes mixed together, covering the floor. Getting down onto her knees, she began pulling out the clothes, setting some aside that she thought may fit her better than the borrowed sweatpants she had been wearing for a over a week.

 _Over a week,_  she considered, and her stomach turned _. If a week could pass this quickly without me being discovered here, in an open home, on a regular street in the middle of the colony, how long was I in prison?_  It was a question that had haunted her the entirety of her incarceration, and with Heero having locked down any and all media access while she was 'home' alone, Relena had know way of knowing how long she had truly been missing.

" _The Preventers have stopped looking for you,"_  her memory taunted, and she struggled not to cry as she continued to clean, finding a broom in a utility closet she could use to sweep the shards of glass and smaller pieces of broken lumber off the floor, emptying them into the broken, empty drawer of the bedside table.

She found the offending picture and sat, staring at it for some time, admiring the handiwork of the frame, and the way the dress had fit so snugly against her once-admirably-shaped body. Looking down at herself, Relena grimaced. The time she had spent in prison had taken her thin, sickly form and made it bony, hard and completely unattractive. She sighed before putting the frame on top of what remained of the bedside table. Finally, the room acceptably clean, Relena sat down on the bed, exhausted. Unable to imagine waiting around for Heero to return, she laid her head down on the pillow and began reading one of the few novels Heero seemed to own,  _Atlas Shrugged_.

She didn't realize she had fallen asleep until her eyes flew open at the sound of the front door slamming shut. The bedroom was completely dark, and Relena tried carefully not to move. _If he thinks I'm asleep, maybe he'll leave me alone_. Heero climbed the stairs and entered the room, clearly looking for her. The hall light had been turned on, and Relena quickly clamped her eyes shut, begging her breathing to slow. She heard his footsteps cross the room, and Relena realized he must be surprised that she had bothered to clean anything.

It wasn't until she felt his weight on the bed that she started to panic, her mind racing as she continued to urge her body to stay still. Heero continued to be silent, and Relena braced herself to keep from flinching as he reached out and, with a shocking amount of gentleness, tucked a lock of her long blonde hair behind her ear. Mentally counting to five with each breath, Relena waited until, finally, Heero stepped away and closed the bedroom door behind him. She sprang up in bed once she heard him reach the bottom of the stairs, flicking on the nearby light.

The picture was gone.

* * *

" _So, I need you to do something with me tomorrow," Neil said, taking a deep drink out of his glass. Not expecting a reaction from the man, he continued, "I think I've got an in on where to find Relena. Doesn't seem like we're still the only ones looking for her." Heero'd head lifted at that, and he took a deep few swallows out of his own glass before the man spoke again. "I've got a meeting with someone tomorrow, but I ain't going alone. You gonna back me up?"_

_Heero looked into the other man's eyes. "Guess so. Got nothing better to do, anyways."_

_Neil laughed. "You sure about that? You've been acting awful strange, Heero… Methinks there's something you're hiding from your beloved partner." The dark-haired man put a hand over his heart, the alcohol and stoic company ramping up his dramatics. "Oh, fine then. I'll pick you up at 3:30 tomorrow. I've gotta head out anyways, supposed to be up early." He took the last swig of his drink before heading out. "3:30, don't forget!"_

Heero didn't forget. By 3:15 he was waiting outside the door, praying Relena continued her relatively obedient streak. He knew she could gain nothing by turning herself in, but he knew Relena was far from ignorant; he stood to lose everything if she was discovered. Neil pulled up on schedule, and Heero walked over and climbed into the car before the other man could so much as open the driver's-side door.

"Alrighty then, right to business, eh? Good to see that hasn't changed." Neil pulled out of the driveway quickly.

"Where are we going?" Heero asked, showing interest in the man's sudden plans for the first time.

"Gotta meet a pair at this bistro downtown. It'll be crowded, but it's better than getting seen alone with them. They might be working against us, but they're… old friends. I don't want anything too bad to happen to them, if we can help it."

Heero felt his heart drop. "You got names?"

"Yeah, but I ain't givin' 'em. Sorry, but rules are rules. You don't have to tell 'em yours, but I can't tell you theirs. I'm just bringing you along to make sure they don't pull a fast one on me; besides, you're better at picking up the little things than I am." Heero nodded, understanding why he was needed, and praying that it wasn't anyone he had once known they were meeting with. The bistro was at the other end of their "quarter", and during the entire drive Heero indulged in something he normally avoided: fretting. His mind was working, running himself through any number of scenarios he could encounter when they finally arrived and met these mystery informants.

By the time they finally arrived, Heero felt prepared, but tense. "Chill out, man. It's not like they're going to just stand up and shoot you," Neil joked, slapping his friend on the shoulder before opening the door and ushering him in.

"Oh my fucking god," Jesse said, before grabbing his sister's arm. "Don't fucking turn around. Oh my god, be cool. Be cool."

"What  _is it_?" Middie hissed, glaring at her brother and tearing her arm away. She was already regretting not just bringing Trowa, but the risk of him being recognized, especially by one of Lavie's people, was too high.

"You wouldn't believe me if I freakin' told you," Jesse said, shaking his head, before he slouched back into his chair and took a deep sip of some kind of specialty lemonade. Middie turned her head casually, meeting Neil's eyes and waving him over, before turning back around.

"Oh my god. I'll fucking kill him." She growled through a false smile once she had turned back around. The two men sat down at the table, and Middie turned on her well-renowned charm. "Hey, Neil! Long time, no see!" She stood and hugged the man, staring down over his shoulder at the man she was sure was Heero Yuy. "You remember Jesse.."

"Who could forget?" he said, rolling his eyes as he sat down. "Not every day someone nearly runs you over with your own car." Jesse smiled behind his lemonade glass, remembering the incident, while Neil simply stared at him before continuing. "Anyways, I didn't come here to talk about that. Tell me what you know."

"Ha! Or what? If you think that's how this is going to work, you're nuts." Middie crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair, angry.

"Tell me what you know, or I report you to Lavie, we find where you're staying, and you get put into prison." Jesse flinched, realizing they had walked right into a trap.

"We know she's alive. She got away from you sometime in the last two weeks, and someone on this colony is hiding her. It's unlikely she'll be able to just sit at home all day much longer, she'll have to leave sometime, and when she does, we'll find her."

Neil arched a brow. "That's a lot of ground to cover. How can you be so sure you'll be the ones to catch her?"

"Because we're not trying to catch her, we're trying to save her. Your orders are to kill her, aren't they? Her and whoever's been hiding her, to cover up the facts. She got away from you, and Lavie's embarrassed. Let him be, the fucking prick. We'll find her and get her out of here, and then she's gonna kick some ass." Middie stood up and pulled her wallet out of her purse, throwing a few bills on the table. "I can see this was a waste of time. You phone us in, and I swear to god, I'll hunt you down and kill you both."

She nodded to Jesse, who stood up and followed her out, practically jogging to keep up with her brusque pace. "Did you get it?" she asked, and Jesse nodded, tossing a phone to her. Clicking a button, Middie smiled as she saw the display. "Alright. Follow them, find out where he lives and meet me back at the hotel as soon as you're done. Don't fucking get caught."

Jesse laughed, jogging out to his rental car. "Oh, please. I learned from the best, didn't I?" He took off to where he had parked down the street, and Middie smiled briefly before turning and taking off toward her own small rental.  _Man, wait 'till Trowa sees this…_  she thought, driving as fast as she could without endangering anyone to get back to the hotel. Arriving, Middie tossed the keys to a valet before running inside and tapping the elevator button no less than seven times, tapping her foot with impatience. When it finally came, she clicked the number of their suite's floor and, upon reaching it, burst through the door.

"Trowa, come look at this!" she said, running into the living room. Trowa looked at her, leaning forward off the couch.

"That was fast. What did you find out?"

"Well, they basically didn't tell us anything, just confirmed what we know. But look, I gotta show you this…" she pulled out Jesse's photo, but Trowa turned away, uninterested. "Hey, what's wrong?" She sat down on the couch, tossing down her purse. "Talk to me."

"It just feels impossible. We've been here over a week and haven't done anything. I just want to find her and get home." He was avoiding her gaze, staring out one of the large windows. "It just feels like there's no progress."

Middie smirked before calling the phone photo back up and showing it to him. "How's  _that_  for progress?" she asked. Trowa immediately grabbed the phone, holding it so that he could see it clearly, without the glare. "Right?" Middie said, proud of herself, but Trowa could do nothing but keep staring at the grainy, but still impossibly clear picture of Heero Yuy, alive and in the flesh.

 


	16. Best Laid Plans

"Trowa, where are you going?" Middie shouted, jumping up off the couch and following Trowa out toward the elevator.

"I'm going to kill him," the man growled, staring at the sheet metal doors until the chime sounded and the doors opened.

"Whoa! Wait, Middie, what the hell?" Jesse shouted as Trowa shoved him back into the elevator and pushed the button for the ground floor. "So it  _is_  him? Jesus… this whole thing just got ten times more complicated than it was this morning." Trowa crossed his arms, ignoring both his companions, while Middie just barely slid through the closing door and swiped her hand down a half-dozen floor numbers.

"You can't just run out there and find him. It's him, we're positive. If anyone's going to find Relena, it'll be him! We just have to wait, and we can find the bastard and take them  _both_. You'll be a hero! It's not worth jeopardizing her to get some petty revenge." Middie looked at Trowa, trying to make eye contact but unable as he stared at the floor.

"This isn't about some petty revenge," Trowa said, and Middie looked at him incredulously. The elevator speaker chimed, and when the doors opened, Trowa quickly grabbed Jesse and threw him into his own suite, clicking the  _DOOR CLOSE_  button behind him. "Heero tried to kill Wufei and Duo. Both of them were hospitalized for weeks because of it. This isn't some escape; it wasn't him getting away from us. He attacked us, and now he's working with them. If he doesn't know where Relena is by now, she's likely dead and buried."

"I… I didn't know," Middie said, walking closer to Trowa. "I mean, Relena always talked about you guys since she met you, but him… she was always  _on_  about him. I think she really loved him, and now he's… well, fuck." She put her arm around the taller man's, resting her head against his bicep.

"She did love him. She loved us all, but everything she did for us, she did for him. And this is how he's repaying her?" Trowa was almost yelling now, his muscles tensing beneath Middie's small hands. The doors opened again, and Trowa lowered his voice. "This is unbelievable. We thought he was alive… I mean, there's no killing the bastard. He couldn't even kill himself properly. But here? Christ… If Relena's out there somewhere, we don't stand a chance of finding her before they do." The doors chimed and opened a final time, and then the elevator continued speedily down to the ground floor. "He deserves to die, and I swear to god, if I see him, I'm gonna-" Trowa stopped dead in his tracks three steps out of the elevator, staring Heero Yuy straight in the eyes.

"Don't take out your gun. I don't think the concierge would like it too much, especially considering they're probably in Lavie's pocket." Heero didn't step any closer, but instead continued to stand, relaxed, in the middle of the hotel's grand entrance.

"How the fuck did you find us?" Trowa asked, advancing on the man, shrugging off Middie's grasp. She stood, silent, her eyes wide as she took in the scene between the two men, the tension enormous, and yet completely inconspicuous to the other frequenters of the hotel, who continued to walk past quietly.

"It really wasn't that hard. I followed the kid she brought with her earlier. Once they split up I realized they'd figured me out. I've never seen you before," Heero said, looking the strange blond woman over, "but it's not terribly important."

Trowa was furious now, but bearing it as he did all his other emotions; quietly, leaving it roiling beneath the surface, clouding his eyes and furrowing his brow. He advanced on Heero quickly, staring down over him. "Give me one good reason not to shoot you dead right this second." To his chagrin, Heero smiled.

"I know where she is, and if you kill me, you'll never find her." He stepped away, half-facing the pair. "If you follow me, you'll never see her again." Heero walked out away, the front doors automatically opening and letting him walk out into the evening air.

"Why don't you follow him?" Middie asked, shocked and confused. "Come on, if we get out there we can still-" Trowa grabbed her arm, staring off after where his old friend had been standing.

"We'll see him again. And we'll see Relena." He turned back and walked to the elevator, waiting for it to come back to the main floor.

"How can you be sure? He just said if we follow him, we wouldn't see her…"

"Because he also said he knew where she was. She's alive, and if we don't follow him, we'll see her." The one-time soldier was calmer now, as the elevator  _ding_ ed and opened. "Heero may work in round-about ways, but he keeps his promises."

* * *

"Wake up," Heero said, turning on the overhead lights in what was once his bedroom. Relena groaned and sat up abruptly, afraid, as she had been every time she had woken since freeing herself from her former prison.

"God, what time is it?" she said, rubbing her eyes and looking or the small alarm clock, turning her gaze embarrassedly as she recalled that it was yet another thing she had broken the night before.

"Three. Put these on," he said, tossing her a set of clean clothes. "We're going out."

"Out?" Relena asked, climbing out of bed. She looked at the clothes briefly before pulling off the t-shirt she wore, tearing it over her head and tossing it on the floor before replacing it with a clean one. Heero couldn't help but stare, able to see where every svelte curve had once been, her bare chest, her ribs pushing painfully against her thin, pale skin…. He turned away quickly, trying to give the woman some privacy while she smirked at him. "It's not like I have anything you haven't seen before," she murmured, and she pulled on the smaller than usual jeans and tugged socks onto her feet. "Where did you get these?"

Heero cleared his throat and turned back around, inspecting her. "Borrowed them from a coworker. We'll get you something that fits better later." He gestured for her to follow him out, and turned the light off before them. Relena felt her stomach begin churning with nervousness.

"Where are you taking me?" she asked quietly, unable to hide the waver in her voice.  _God, not back there_ … she thought frantically, her hands still working to tie on the shoes Heero passed to her, zipping up the jacket he handed to her.  _Telling me to get comfortable would be the perfect way to trick me right back into being in prison_ … She stopped, finally, looking next to her to where Heero sat, quietly tying his own shoes on the base of the stairs. "Tell me the truth."

He looked up and met her eyes. "To a department store. There's one across town that's open twenty-four hours. You need clothes that fit; we can pick you up whatever it is you need to stay for a while. No one should recognize you. Here," he said, pulling a hat out of his bag, "wear this." Watching as she tugged the hat on, he nodded, seemingly satisfied. "Come on, then." Relena followed obediently, climbing into the passenger side of his sporty and luxurious car, snapping on her seatbelt.

"Lavie pays well, hmm?" she said, looking out the window at the artificially lit street. Not expecting a reply, she continued to stare out at the rows of identical houses, tiny parks and stores dotting the streets before they headed out to a larger highway. Surprisingly awake, Relena sat up in her seat, looking curiously out the windshield.

"Planning another escape?" Heero asked, smirking at her slightly. Relena narrowed her eyes before grinning back.

"Seemed to work out pretty well for me the first time, and I didn't even know where I was at, then." She tossed her hair haughtily as Heero turned away, seemingly upset by her pointing out the weakness in his team's security. "You never told me what happened to those guards. I'm sure the one didn't survive…" her voice quieted as she remembered the night, the memory seeming far enough away to have been years before, instead of barely over a week.

"He didn't. Emergency showed up, but by the time they got him to the hospital he was dead." Heero kept driving, keeping the speed limit as he led them through the colony's wide highways. "Apparently being crushed by a transport truck does that to you." Relena winced, upset that she had been forced to cause the man's painful demise.

"I did what I had to," she replied, continuing to look away. "I didn't want to have to kill him, but it was the only way…" They pulled into the parking lot of the department store Heero had described, and Heero kept the doors locked as he parked the car.

"If you try anything, they'll pick you up in an instant. This isn't like the Earth; everyone works for Lavie first, and their career second. If you try to escape, you'll get taken back without a doubt." He was looking directly at Relena now, and she finally turned back and stared at him. "I'd appreciate it if you'd think twice before trying to murder me here." He unlocked the doors, and watched as Relena spoke before stepping out.

"If you ever treat me the way they did, I'll kill you, too." She shut the door forcefully behind her and stood waiting in the dimly lit lot until Heero caught up to her, locking the car behind them. He looked at her, seemingly surprised, before they walked into the store together taking a small cart with them. Heero guided them over to the general women's department and looked around briefly, his expression somewhere between clueless and disinterested. "I don't know exactly what you want, just pick out enough of whatever you need."

Relena looked at him with a raised brow. "Well, how long are you expecting this  _vacation_  to last, dear?" she asked, tilting her head in mock innocence as another shopper passed by. Heero paused, seriously considering what she had asked.

"Just get enough clothes for a week. I have a washing machine in the basement." Relena nodded, perusing the cheap fabrics and generic clothing interestedly. She grabbed a few things, throwing them over the side of the cart. "That should be fine, but…" Heero watched his strange companion as she blushed softly, avoiding his gaze.

"What?" he finally asked, becoming annoyed.

"Well, there are other considerations… other things I might need," she said quietly, the pink in her cheeks becoming brighter. Heero was almost happy to see the colour rise in her face; not only it was a sign her body was becoming more balanced, but it didn't appear to be caused by an unholy rage.

"Like what?" he asked curiously, not entirely understanding her vague approach.

"Well, I have the unfortunate burden of being born female, and if you get my body fat back up I'm sure said body will presume natural functions," Relena finally spat out, annoyed that Heero hadn't simply picked up her nuance.  _Your turn to blush_ , she thought, crossing her arms.

"Well… I guess we can pick up whatever you want before we leave." Heero finally said, pushing the cart farther into the store. Relena nodded slowly, sighing and following after him.

"So, what should I call you?" she asked, tossing a few packages of panties and socks over her shoulder and into the cart. "I assume what I know you by isn't what you go by here. I heard N-" she paused briefly, mentally slapping herself, praying Heero hadn't heard her slip, "-your visitor call you Caden the other night. Is that what you prefer?" She looked back at Heero over the end of the slowly filling cart, examining him through her crystal-clear blue eyes. "I'll take that as a yes," she finally said, turning around and walking further into the store, picking out some pajamas and, finally, a few bits of makeup and the female 'necessities'.

"I guess that's everything I need. Is there anything you need? I'd feel bad if you made this whole trip just for me…" The dark haired man rolled his eyes, nearly disbelieving that the woman could worry about him spending time on her, even in their current situation.

"It's not a problem, you would have needed all this some time or another," he said, pushing the cart into a checkout and tossing things onto the conveyor and asking the clerk to bag them up. The young woman looked exhausted, her deep brown bangs hanging in her face as she bagged the groceries and clothes quietly. "How's Shawna?" Heero asked, and the girl looked up, her eyes brightening slightly.

"She's doing awright. Still in the 'ospital, but should be out by nex' week, they say." She smiled, nodding her head and telling Heero the total, to which he handed over a plastic card. She swiped it quickly and handed it back, keeping up her newly interested expression, staring at the young man almost adoringly as Relena gathered up the bags and helped him out to the car.

"Who was that?" Relena finally asked, surprised and infuriated by the jealousy welling up in her stomach.

"A coworker's sister. Their mom's quite sick, I guess, but it sounds like she's out of the worst now." He put the last of the bags in the trunk before unlocking the doors and climbing in as Relena did on her side.

"I just can't believe this. No one even looked at me twice. I walk out my front door anywhere else and it's a zoo, but here…" She looked at Heero, her lips pursed.

"You're just another person, now," he replied, pulling the car out of the lot. "If you don't walk like Relena Darlian and talk like Relena Darlian and get expected to be Relena Darlian, eventually people are going to stop caring." He stopped at the end of his last sentence, realizing, in his own heart, that there was no way that could be true. He started at the woman sitting next to him, her long hair held back, a ball-cap obscuring her face, and old, plain clothes on, and new that Relena Darlian could be anyone, and he would still care.

* * *

"Would it kill you to let me read the paper?" Relena finally asked the next morning, her hair still wet from the shower, clinging to the plain blue t-shirt she wore and dripping down her back. Heero looked at the woman warily; she had been so calm most days, almost accepting of her fate, clearly aware that this was a better alternative to whatever her arrangements had been prior, yet only two nights before she had also torn his house apart in a blind rage. He knew that there was plenty hiding beneath the surface of Relena Darlian's skin, but the blind terror he saw in her eyes when she woke, suddenly, from those dreams that kept him awake even downstairs, the tenacious fury that she showed whenever he touched her, those were unexpected, dangerous, and worrisome.

"I guess not," he finally said, tossing her the copy he had picked up off the street soon before. The young woman snatched it up greedily, pulling a rubber band off it and reading the first page thoughtfully. "Despite what you think, the universe hasn't been laid to waste because you 'disappeared'." Relena didn't look up from the page, but tears were streaming from her eyes now, silently. "Oh, come on," Heero said, almost exasperated at his inability to predict her emotions.  _Not that it was ever my strongest suit…._ ,"it was just a joke."

She looked up at him, and he almost flinched away from the sorrow in her eyes. "It's been two months." Whispering, she put the paper down in front of her, her hands shaking as she brought them up to her face, hiding those ultra-expressive eyes from him.

"You didn't know?" He said, getting food out of the fridge as he tried to avoid staring at her. Relena was clearly still crying, her posture crumbling in on itself as she struggled to try and compose herself enough to make a response.

"They kept me in the dark… I could only guess while I was in… that  _place_." The shudder that ripped through her at the memory was obvious even from the corner of Heero's eye, and that made up his mind.  _Whatever Lavie told us was a lie_ , he thought decidedly, putting a container of milk back in the fridge. "I know it's been a week that you've kept me here, but I didn't know… I don't know what I thought. It felt like six months. I guess I should be happy." When Heero closed the door, Relena was resting her head against the back of her kitchen chair, staring at the ceiling.

"Happy?" He asked, taking his bowl and sitting down across from her.

"Yes," she said, wiping the tears from her face. "It's only been two months. They'll still be looking for me." Heero shook his head, and Relena smiled at him as she looked into his eyes. "You know they will. You know they'll never stop. Une can tell them whatever pleases her; those men will never leave me here alone. And when they find us, you'd better have your story straight."

Heero swallowed, hard, watching as Relena stood and walked out of the kitchen and back upstairs, taking the paper with her, knowing she was right.  _They'll never stop looking…_  he thought.  _I just wonder exactly what they'll find._

A little over an hour later he was at work, entering the gleaming mock-office building and completing his security check. "Good to see you, Mr. Li," the tiny receptionist greeted him quietly. "I believe Mr. Cairns left the information you asked for in your office."

"Thanks," Heero murmured before entering the elevator and progressing to his out-of-the-way office. It was a small space, half the size his office had been when he worked with the Preventers, but he worked for Lavie now; he was no longer a Gundam pilot, the head of security for powerful people, or even anyone exceptional for reasons other than his performance in the past few years he had spent under the older man's command. He flicked on the lights, putting his bag down and seeing the package on his desk.  _Caden- Here's that footage you asked for. Destroy it when finished, or return to me_ , the note read, and Heero quickly pulled it off it's sticky backing and tossed it into the trash, viewing the data stick curiously.

Connecting it to his laptop, he opened the main folder and saw weeks worth of surveillance files, all from one specific place: the basement room where, against his knowledge, Relena had been held for nearly two months. He recalled the day Lavie had debriefed them on the subject, the day he had learned Relena Darlian had, truly, been captured…

" _She's to be held in my care, at my estate on the north-colony," Lavie said, smiling to himself._

" _I still don't understand what you need her for. She's wiling to sign the paperwork, isn't that enough?" An intern had asked, young and inexperienced, but wondering the same things all the others who were involved with the high-stakes kidnapping were._

_Lavie laughed. "There will_ _always_ _be more to it than paperwork, you fool. We have her, now, the adored little angel of the Earth Sphere. They'll do anything to get her back, they'll be sick with worry over her. You see?" he said, bringing his hands together, still smiling. "It will be the perfect time to strike."_

Heero clicked on the file of Relena's first day in the secret detention rooms buried into the 'ground' of the colony, and sighed. The room was dark, and he fast-forwarded through several hours before, finally, light splayed into the room as a door was opened, and Heero quickly put in a pair of headphones just in time to hear the struggle as Relena was shoved roughly into the dark chamber.

" _Don't you_ _dare_ _leave me in here alone! Help!"_  Relena was practically screaming, pounding on the door with her hands in fists, relentless as she kept up her tirade of anger. The anger turned to threats, which turned to bargaining, which, as he clicked through the days, punctuated only by brief meals and check-ins, turned to begging, and finally, to desolate silence. Seemingly beaten only ten days into her 'sentence', Relena sat quietly in the corner of the black room, barely able to be seen by the light-receptive security camera. A man entered the room, and as quick as lightening Relena was on her feet, snatching the tray of food from his hands and beating him with it, kicking him and yelling at him nearly incoherently before he backed out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

Heero felt strangely proud of the young woman as he watched, knowing he had contributed some of her newly utilized defensive training. Each time a new man entered the room, she had the same reaction, the same intense, blinding fury that he had briefly been exposed to time and again since she had become his new housemate. It seemed as though she was preparing herself, punishing her guards in advance… and then Heero saw why. The next day, Relena was chained to the wall, her hands and feet held at awkward angles, forcing her to stand on clearly weakened legs. That was when her true hardship began: men he knew and some he did not entered the room, slapping Relena hard when she spat in their faces, refusing to tell them the information they demanded; access to her accounts, information on other workers, where to find certain people. During all these interrogations, she held strong, pushing her limits until finally, Relena could see that she would not be killed for keeping her secrets.

The rest of the time the guards were cruel to her, no longer young, untrained men, but older, harsher agents, those Lavie reserved for his own personal guard. They taunted her, touched her, and Heero felt himself grow sick with an aggravation he could not name as he watched them violate her, always stopping at the edge, never truly damaging her, but never allowing her to feel safe, almost always leaving her chained up for hours at a time.

A knock sounded at the door, and Heero slammed his laptop shut and yanked out his headphones. "Come in," he said, irritated and unsettled.

"Just me," Neil said, falling into the chair across from his desk. "What are you up to?"

"Nothing," Heero lied, "just trying to catch up on some things."

"Anything interesting going on in the life of Caden Li lately?" Neil asked, snapping open the paper he had carried in with them. It was then that Heero realized the headline that had so shaken his houseguest:  _WHO IS SEARCHING FOR OUR PRINCESS?_  "Guess that's a no, hmm?" Coming back to reality, Heero shook his head. "Well, that's all for the better. I guess Lavie wants to see a bunch of us, there's a meeting going on upstairs, floor twelve. Wanna head up?" The two men headed for the elevator, Heero locking his office up behind him. "Can't believe they still haven't found her. I mean honestly… what's to stop them from just sending a few thousand guys up here and kicking our asses upside down looking? It's not like they don't have the man-power…"

"She would never let them. Une, I mean. With the politics involved, she wouldn't be able to justify sending that many men after one lower-level official."

Neil shrugged as they reached the twelfth floor. "I guess. It's not like she's just anyone though, you know?"  _More than you,_  Heero thought to himself, temporarily distracted, thinking of the way Relena looked when she slept, the captivating clarity of her eyes when she woke... "Yo, stay with me, bro," Neil said, clapping the man on the shoulder before coming to the large conference room. "Whoa…. How big  _is_  this meeting? I feel underdressed."

Heero had to agree, seeing hundreds of other men and women beginning to fill in the seats in the massive auditorium. "Thank you all for coming," Lavie's voice sounded, and a hush passed over the room as the two men took their empty seats. "As you are obviously aware, there has been an unfortunate incident regarding the transport of our prized prisoner, the Foreign Minister, Relena Darlian. Not only has she escaped, but she also murdered one of our trained agents and severely wounded two others." Lavie pressed his hands against the podium, an angry look visible even from the back rows. "She has been deceiving us all from the beginning. This cold-blooded murder was no work of some innocent pacifist! Pushed in front of a moving transport! A painful and unnecessary death, and for what? We know this conniving 'princess'," he practically spat the word, "is hiding out still on this colony. We still have her in our grasps, ladies and gentlemen. We need to find who is hiding her, who is keeping her here, and bring her back into safe care immediately, before she can hurt anyone else." Murmurs of agreement passed, and Heero began to feel his anxiety rising.

"As some of you are aware, we have big plans for the Minister. She refused to give us the information we asked for, and so we will have to go on without it. The manufacturing for the weapon is still in place." Neil looked at Heero, briefly confused.

"What weapon-" The large white canopy above Lavie's stage lit up with a series of complex blueprints and technical details.

"It is coming along at an amazing speed, thanks to all our talented engineers and manufacturers." A few whoops were heard, and Lavie smiled slightly. "We project it should be operational by April, well before our target date. If all goes as planned, we could hope for an early launch. Now, I know this is all quite new information for some of you; expect to receive more throughout the week. I cannot debrief you all individually, but your team leaders will fill in the blanks. Now, return to your work, we have much to prepare for!" Applause rang throughout the auditorium, and Heero and Neil looked at each other, the same strange looks on their faces.

"This just got so much more complicated than my brain can handle, today," Neil finally said as they waited for the elevator. "Any idea who our team leader is?"

Heero took his phone out of his pocket, flicking through his new messages.

"Lavie," he replied, surprised.

"Wow, the top brass himself. We must be like… the ultimate brown-nosers or something, huh?" Neil smiled, and for a moment Heero was reminded of his old friend, Duo Maxwell, the same contagious, devilish brightness in both their eyes.

"Yes, I guess so," Heero replied. He thought back to the last time he had seen his dearest friend, and looked at his newest one carefully, quietly. With the old, he had committed a heinous betrayal, and knew that with each passing day he kept Relena's presence a secret, he was dallying with committing yet another.

 


	17. Pinned

_September 9, A.C. 194, Sanq_

" _Mind if I sit down?" Relena lowered her book carefully, staring just over the tops of the pages at the sudden disturbance._ Great, _she thought,_ the new boy. _He continued to stand, clearing his throat awkwardly while shifting his weight on his feet. Struggling not to roll her eyes, the young girl moved over on the bench she occupied carefully, tucking her skirt under her bottom and crossing her feet at the ankles._

" _It's a free country," she finally replied dryly, going back to reading as the boy sat down. The dark uniform he wore matched the darkness of his eyes and hair, and Relena watched him carefully from the corner of her eye._

" _Beautiful day, isn't it?" he said, smiling, his bright white teeth contrasting with the darkness of his tan skin. Relena nodded, not taking her eyes off the page. "What are you reading? Is that the book for St. James' class?" The boy was staring at her intently now, and Relena sighed, realizing that there was simply no way to politely ignore the conversation._

" _Yes. I'm afraid I got behind and I'm trying to catch up." She folded the book on her lap, putting a finger on her page to keep it._

" _Well, I'm sure you'll be fine. You always school him whenever he tries to trick you. Which I had that kind of tenacity." He smiled at her again, the motion almost causing him to close his eyes._

" _It's Neil, right?" Relena finally asked, unable to contain her curiosity._

" _Yep, that's me! Sorry to bother you, but Patricia suggested I talk to you. She's got it in her head that you're incapable of being mean to the 'new kid'… or is just playing a foul prank on me."_

" _I'm capable of a lot of things," Relena said, half amused. Neil laughed, settling back onto the bench, staring out over the green, well-manicured schoolyard._

" _So Pattie said. She told me some pretty interesting things about what you get up to after hours. Can't say I'm uninterested." The tone of the boy's voice was different now, lowered, conveying subtlety that Relena hadn't been sure Neil was capable of._

" _I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about," Relena said back sharply, reopening her book and flipping back to her page._

" _Of course not. But hearing the same story from Pattie, Middie_ and _Wufei makes your denial a bit less… convincing." Relena sighed heavily, putting down her book and looking over at him, eyes narrowed._

" _What do you want?" she asked, not bothering to hide her irritation._

" _I want in, clearly," Neil replied, turning toward her. "Oh, don't ignore me! I'm serious!"_

" _I get that, Neil, but it simply isn't going to happen. This isn't some Weekender's club. It's not even a big deal, it all just started because I needed people around I could trust, and now I have them. Besides, I barely know you at all." Picking up her book, Relena stood, straightened her skirt slightly, and went to walk away, glad to put the incident behind her._ L'Ombre is dead _, she thought,_ I want it to stay that way.  _She was startled as she felt a hand take hers, and looked back to see Neil holding it, looking at her imploringly._

" _Then get to know me," he said, stepping closer to her. "I want to know you."_

* * *

_March 7, A.C. 200, X-18997_

Relena's eyes fluttered open and she sat up, gasping as her vision filled with not the sun-filled, blooming back yard she had been expecting, but the darkness of nightfall. "Oh, dammit!" she exclaimed, jumping off the lounger she had so carelessly fallen asleep on and running to the patio door, throwing it open and dashing inside, slamming it closed behind her.

"Shit!" Throwing the borrowed sunglasses down on the coffee table, Relena whirled around as the front door closed loudly. "Shit!"

"You don't have to hide, it's just me," Heero said. It still jarred him to hear Relena swearing, knowing that even though she  _could_ , the woman would rarely curse unless it was warranted.

"Of course it is," Relena said, almost mournfully.  _I wish it had been_ anyone _else…_

"How was your day?" Heero asked, his deep voice almost amicable as he deposited his lunch dishes in the kitchen.

"Pretty boring, as usual," Relena said, refusing to return her captor's charm. "I did some reading. Dinner's in the fridge." She took her usual place, leaning against the doorframe that led between the living room and the kitchen, crossing her arms. Heero took in her form almost hungrily, her long legs bared underneath a pair of shorts, a slim green tank top contrasting the highlight in her hair, the newly tanned colour of her skin.  _Wait... tan?_

"Where were you reading, exactly?" Heero asked, stepping toward her.

"Uh, just here, in the house!" Relena said, and Heero almost laughed.  _You_  still _can't lie to me._

"So how, exactly, did you get sunburned?" he asked, grabbing ahold of Relena's hand and examining the dirt under her nails. "Been gardening?" Relena growled and pulled her hand away from his angrily, stalking over to the small dining table.

"What does it even matter? Your neighbours are gone all day and the fence is six feet tall. There's no way anyone would have seen me, and besides, it's just like you said; If I left, I'd be dead by now." Leaning her cheek against the palm of her hand, Relena watched as Heero pulled his dinner plate out and microwaved it. "Speaking of which," she said, crossing those enticing legs, "have you figured out what you're going to do with me, yet?"

"What?" Heero asked, burning his fingers slightly as he pulled out the overheated food.

"You can't keep me here forever. One way or another you're going to get caught." Heero cringed at her analysis of his situation, knowing she was ultimately right.

"Do you want to go out?" He asked impulsively, trying to change the conversation.

"I'm sorry?" Relena was looking at him incredulously now, her brow arched dramatically.

"I'm tired of left overs, no offense. There's a good Thai place down the street I thought you might like."  _I_ know _you_ will _like,_  he corrected himself, knowing Thai was Relena's favorite cuisine.

"Why?" Relena asked, surprising him. "Why would I  _want_  to do that? Aren't you worried I'll run away? What if someone recognizes me?"

"You won't run away, there's hair dye in the bathroom, and because you want to eat something that isn't whatever you cooked already? You only made enough for me, and you haven't been eating enough as it is. Besides, I know you hate being stuck here all day. I'm trying to do you a favour."

Relena laughed harshly, the sound grating against Heero's nerves, reminding him how far it was from her usual light, airy giggle. "Yeah, I'm  _so_  eager for you to do me more of those," she said sarcastically, pushing away from the table and heading upstairs abruptly. Heero could do nothing but stare after her as she left, waiting until he heard the shower running before realizing that, in the end, she was still going to accept his offer. Re-wrapping his plate and putting it back in the fridge, Heero headed upstairs to his bedroom, searching through the dresser to find less casual clothing, groaning as he bent down to open a low-lying drawer.  _I need to get a more comfortable couch_ , he internally noted, pulling out a dress shirt.

Pulling his shirt over his head, Heero turned as he heard the bedroom door close behind him, Relena nearly shrieking as she realized it was occupied. Her newly darkened hair lay lank and wet about her shoulders, dripping water along her bosom tantalizingly, the small white towel she'd used wrapped tightly around her middle.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't realize… Just let me grab my clothes and I'll get out of here," Relena said, blushing with embarrassment. Before she could move, however, Heero had approached her, bringing a hand up to her deep brown hair curiously, moving her lengthy bangs out of her eyes. The sudden interest and touch terrified the young woman, her thoughts racing as she remembered the unwanted caresses she had suffered in prison. Her pulse raced, and she lowered her eyes, taking in Heero's well-muscled form, and realized that the reaction was not just because of her past trauma.  _What is_ wrong _with me?_ She thought, still unable to move away from the man's body as he stepped closer to her again, his chest nearly pressed against hers now, trapping her against the door. "Heero," she murmured, feeling his breath against her lips, before he finally bent down and kissed her deeply.

Heero marveled briefly at the softness of her skin beneath his fingers, the delicious taste of her lips against his, before a sharp smack against his cheek brought him back to reality. "What is  _wrong with you?_ " Relena said, pushing him away from her roughly. "What, you think you can just Stockholm me into doing whatever you want? You're disgusting!" She moved away from the door, protecting her back from him, before she opened the drawed that was 'hers' and pulled out a few articles of clothing. She held them to her chest before glaring back at Heero. " _Why_  are you still here? Get out!" Heero quickly obliged, nearly running out of his room and slamming the door behind him.

He groaned, leaning back against the door and brining a hand up to his face. "What in the hell was that?" he asked himself, almost as shocked at his own compulsive need to kiss her as Relena was. He mentally kicked himself for being so uncontrolled.  _After everything she's been through, as if she'd ever want_ you _again, stupid._  He sighed, leaning harder into the door, still holding his shirt in one hand carefully. Eventually the door swung open, surprising him and toppling him over onto the floor.

"Get up and put your shirt on," Relena ordered, standing over him. "You might be a complete ass, but I still love Thai food."

* * *

"So, what's the update?" Mingmei asked over the vidcom screen thoughtfully, Wufei seated next to her.

"Not much, I'm afraid. We've narrowed down where we think she could have gone. There's still been no word about Lavie's people finding Relena, so we know she's still out there, somewhere."

"Yeah, not to mention the fact that he's such an asshat, Lavie would be trumpeting it from the rooftops if he'd managed to catch her." Middie rolled her eyes, as though such behavior was unbecoming, even to a confessed 'loud-mouth' such as herself.

"Well, could you use backup? There are lots of us willing to come up there, and it looks like Lavie hasn't been able to talk the ESUN into letting him completely close up his 'borders' yet." Wufei leaned in, looking at them both in earnest.

"Who could you send?" Middie asked.

"Myself and Ming, definitely," Wufei started. "Charlotte as well, but we'd have to come off the books. Jenkins, Philips, Valdez…"

"Honestly, he could go all day. There hasn't been one person who's said 'no'," Mingmei said, interrupting her husband.

"You got ahold of  _everyone?_ " Middie said, practically in awe. Trowa was unsure of why she was so impressed, but he was only basically aware of the numbers of L'Ombre's members.

"What, you mean the those I met weren't everyone?"

Wufei laughed, and Trowa was almost startled to hear it. "Not even close. Since when have you known Relena to do anything by halves? When she puts her mind to something, she does it. She got shipped around a lot as a kid, you know. She wanted to make sure all her bases were covered, I guess. There are at least fifty members for every continent, more in space… Even more who are just members by association." He paused, realizing how much he had just given away. "There are a lot more people than just us who'd give anything for that crazy woman." Mingmei rolled her eyes, elbowing Wufei hard before turning back to the conversation.

"Point is, we're coming up there."

"What? Come on, this is  _our_  deal! You can't just keep sending people up here with no work visas, no excuses, and expect it to end well! We'll count ourselves  _lucky_  if all that happens is deportation!" Middie shouted, frustrated, before leaning back in her chair.

"You're going to have to deal with it. We'll come up next, and bring up others if we need to. Our main goal is to get Relena out, we can deal with Lavie and his cult later." Wufei terminated the connection before Middie or Trowa could argue, drawing out another frustrated groan from the notoriously impatient blonde.

"Seriously.  _Ass. Hat_." She said, rising from her seat and continuing into the kitchen of their shared suite, grabbing a carton of juice out of the fridge and drinking from it freely. Trowa raised a brow but said nothing, watching her close the lid and put the box back in the fridge. "So why, exactly, are we not telling them about Heero? Kinda figured that'd be major news."

Trowa sighed, sitting down at the kitchen island. "When Heero left, Wufei and Duo went after him, trying to reason with him. He almost killed both of them. Telling Wufei now would turn this whole thing into a witchhunt. Heero happens to know where Relena is; we can't risk scaring him off again before we find her." Middie nodded, sitting down next to him.

"So what's this guy's deal? I mean, he as a Pilot, right, isn't he supposed to have some kind of… like, care about you guys?"

"You'd think so. Heero's always been the odd one out, I guess. When the war ended, he never seemed to be happy with how things worked out."

"Well, none of us were supposed to live, right?" Middie turned toward her companion, a compassion and understanding in her eyes that Trowa had rarely seen, especially from a woman.  _Especially from a_ beautiful _woman._

"Exactly. I guess Heero dealt with that the hardest. He just kind of took off out of the blue… it really broke Relena. She lost her mother so soon after… it changed her. I just hope she comes out of this… whole." He looked up at Middie, smiling slightly, though his eyes betrayed his worry. "I guess I'm not telling you anything you don't know already, though."

"Nope!" Middie said, patting him on the shoulder. "Now quit moping, let's get dinner. Besides, you deserve to hear about how Lena and I met. It really is quite the thrilling little bit." He could tell she was trying to cheer him up, but Trowa didn't mind at all, standing up. "Come on, I know this  _awesome_  Thai place. It was Lena's fave before Lavie took over."

* * *

Heero flipped open his phone, pressing it to his ear while holding the steering wheel with his free hand. "Yuy, here. Yep. No. Sure… No!... Oh, piss off," he said, said, snapping the device shut and tossing it onto the dashboard thoughtlessly. "Work," he said, answering a question that hadn't been asked, hoping his vague answer would be enough to keep Relena from becoming more curious. He looked at her briefly, but she remained in her old position, staring out the window, shoulders angled purposefully away from him, avoiding any and all contact with him.  _Good job, Yuy, you really stepped in it now_. For a moment, Heero felt as though he was having an out of body experience, or dreaming; a year before, he had been sure he would never see Relena Darlian again, except for on the news, and here she was, living in his house, riding in his car, sleeping in his bed…

"Are we almost there?" She asked, finally, breaking the silence.

"Yes."

"Oh, thank god." She said, slouching farther into her seat, crossing her arms angrily. Heero sighed, and for a moment Relena regretted being so cold to him, remembering the scortching feeling of his lips against hers, the way he had held her close to him, and suddenly the regret turned back into full-blown justification.  _Am I punishing him for doing this to me, or am I punishing him because I… No._ She shook her head at her internal argument, quashing her conscience as they pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant. "Forget it," Relena said, holding up a hand as Heero opened his mouth to speak. "I know the drill already. 'Don't run away, don't say our names, don't do anything stupid.' Got it. Now let's get in there, I'm starving." Heero massaged his temples as he opened his car door, shutting and locking up as he followed Relena inside.

Relena was practically overwhelmed by the sights, sounds and smells that permeated the restaurant. Being held in prison on top of being captive in an empty house most of the day had left her unprepared for the sudden return to normal life, and she felt airy and over-stimulated as the hostess greeted and sat them at a small table in the corner of the open building.

"Just water," Heero said, and Relena suddenly became aware that the waitress must have asked them what they wanted to drink. "You okay?" Heero asked after the perky blond girl had left, and Relena glared back at him.

"I'm fine,  _dear_ ," she practically sneered, replacing the glare with a smile as the girl came back, leaning extra low as she placed the young man's water on the table, smiling provocatively before looking at Relena as though she wondered what on Earth someone like  _her_  was doing with someone like  _him_. Relena returned the disdainful look, immediately dropping it as her eyes met her 'dates', realizing how childish she was acting.

"Anything I can order for you… two?" The waitress asked, and before Relena could speak Heero had ordered both his own meal and her favorite off the menu.  _He remembered_ , her mind whispered, seemingly separating the part that still loved the man she stared at with the part that so vehemently saw him as the enemy.

"Thank you," she managed to choke out, reaching for a glass of water and taking a deep drink. The rest of the meal passed in relative silence, Heero watching Relena's demeanor soften as she took in her favorite foods, finally smiling at him. "This was actually a good idea," she complimented him, and Heero temporarily thought that he had merely imagined their moment in the bedroom just a few hours before. He stared at Relena now, watching her drink her water along with some kind of sweet-smelling liquor, her dark hair falling long and curling at the ends, framing her face and trailing down her back. Her top was decorated with a smattering of sequins, making the black face sparkle, showing just the faintest slope of her breasts, her newly tanned legs shown off beneath a short grey skirt.

"It doesn't look that bad, does it?" Relena asked, running a hand through her 'new hair' self-consciously.

"You look beautiful," Heero answered.  _Ugh, next time I should just save Relena the trouble and stab myself instead_. But, surprisingly, Relena merely averted her eyes back to her plate and blushed quietly at his flattery. "I have to use the restroom, but I'll be right back." Pushing out his chair, Heero walked away, and for once Relena had a clear view of the entire restaurant. Many other couples were seated there, and Relena examined them over the top of her glass as she drank deeply, savouring the affects of the alcohol working through her system.

Putting her glass down sharply, Relena almost spit out the sip she had in her mouth before swallowing hard and staring at a nearby couple, entranced.  _It can't be…. Oh, god, don't let me be dreaming_ , she begged as she stood up from the table, crossing the floor quickly. Before her eyes, Middie Une and Trowa Barton sat, occupying one of the few free tables, one obviously meant for a group of four. The didn't seem to acknowledge her presence at all, and Relena realized that even her own best friends likely wouldn't recognize her.  _I have to get over there now!_  Her mind urged her, and Relena quickly scampered over to their table and threw herself into a chair facing away from the rest of the dining room, breathless.

"I'm sorry, can we-  _Jesus chri-"_  Middie practically yelled before Trowa could clap a hand over her mouth forcefully. He held it there as he fought to remember to breathe, staring at an overly thin, brunette version of the woman who was most definitely Relena Darlian.

"Oh, my god, Relena…." He breathed, releasing Middie's mouth and taking her in his arms, shocked at how frail she felt. "You're alive!" Tears sprang to both their eyes, but Relena pushed him away quickly.

"I love you," she whispered, "but I'm not here alone. It's Heero. He found me, or I found him… Either way, he has me trapped here! He goes by the name "Caden", I don't know his fake last time, and Neil is here, and they're both working for Lavie… Oh god, Middie, tell me the others aren't coming." The brunette reached across the table and took her friend's hand hard, and Middie flinched.

"They weren't just going to leave you here to rot. We're getting you out of here. We're going to find you, get out of here, come back and beat the shit out of these assholes," Middie whispered back.

"I love you. Oh, my god. I've never been so happy to see either of you in my life. I have to go, he could be back any minute. Find me," Relena said, releasing both their hands and walking back to her table, sitting down and taking another long drink. The two simply stared at her, mystified, before Heero re-entered the room and sat down, obscuring her from their view.

"Holy fucking shit," Middie said, leaning back in her chair, running a hand through her hair. "Told you I had some good goddamn taste in food. Let's get the hell outta here before he sees us." Tossing some bills on the table, Trowa followed Middie out, but not before he caught one last glimpse of his missing princess, blowing her a quick kiss.

"Aww, never would have taken you for the romantic type!" Middie joked, elbowing Trowa kiddishly as they made their way into the parking lot. The restaurant wasn't far from their hotel, and so they had walked the short distance there. "Man! I just can't believe it! Of all the luck… and now we have a name. And we  _know_  that bastard Neil knows Heero! Brother, this goes so much deeper than we though-" Middie found herself unable to speak as Trowa pressed his lips against hers, thoroughly silencing her. She melded herself against him easily, both their joys at finding their lost friend combining with the tension they had both felt growing between them over their time together, and once they separated, Middie smiled up at Trowa coyly.

"Guess you won't be sleeping in the other room tonight."

* * *

"Thank you for the dinner," Relena said, her perfectly groomed manners never slipping despite not only the boiling anger she felt for her captors, previous and current, but also the overwhelming emotions that flooded her as she recalled seeing her dearest friends' faces, knowing that somewhere on this very colony, they were looking for her.  _They found me. I_ knew _they'd never stop looking_. Heero's puzzled expression told her she was still smiling broadly at the memory.

"You're welcome…." He answered carefully, and Relena practically danced her way inside the house as he opened the front door for her. "What's got you so happy?" he asked, and Relena turned toward him, sporting a grin so devilish even Duo himself would have been jealous.

"They're looking for me. You're going to get caught, you know." She hung her jacket up on the wall hooks carefully, kicking off her tiny flat shoes. "The best part is, if my people find me, I get out of here free,  _and_  I get to take Lavie down. The sad part is, my dear," she said, walking toward Heero, pressing a hand to his chest. She pushed him against the door roughly, pressing her body against his in a way reminiscent of that morning, leaning forward and breathing in his ear, "The best part is that if my people find me here, you go to prison for life, and if your people find me here, you die with me."

She spun away from him then, leaving Heero stunned, pinned to the door by an unfamiliar and hated emotion: fear.

 


	18. Hold On

_March 12, A.C. 200, Brussels_

"Something's not right," Wufei said, tapping his fingers against his coffee cup irritably.

"It's not like Trowa to lie," Dorothy said, for once solemn and almost agreeable.

"Like you can have an opinion. You've spoken to him three times in your life," Wufei spat, his thoughts turning in circles.

"What, exactly, is your problem?" Dorothy asked, her brow furrowing in aggravation before she took a long sip of her well-brewed tea.

"Something Quatre said to me a while ago. He's convinced Heero is in space, likely on X-18997." Dorothy tilted her head, nodding slightly.

"Well, it is a 'warrior's paradise' there. It would make sense for someone like him to escape the pacifism of Earth by going there. Did Quatre say how he knew?"

"Just said he felt it," Wufei admitted somewhat sheepishly, annoyed that Dorothy was pointing out his faith in something as subjective as feeling.

"Seriously, Wufei, you know how he is. You can't put so much stock in something like his gut feeling," Dorothy chided. "That said, he's rarely wrong…"

"Only with you," jabbed the young man, eliciting a slight growl as he grinned into his mug, taking another deep drink of his black coffee. Swallowing, Wufei changed the subject. "I think Ming and I are going to head up to meet with Middie and the others. They've seen her, and I think they know where to find her."

"I heard. I was so happy to hear the little Princess is all right. I can't imagine what she's been through, poor thing. Where do you think she's been hiding all this time?"

"Damned if I know. Trowa will find her, but we need to have a plan to get her out of there when they do."

Dorothy rolled her eyes, crossing her long legs and tossing her long blond hair over her shoulder. "Don't be ridiculous, Chang. You going up there will set off enough bells. It's a miracle no one's recognized Barton by now. Besides, we need to figure out a plan of attack." She smiled, catlike.

"Attack?" Wufei asked, disliking where the conversation was headed.

"Yes, definitely. It's not enough that they kidnapped Relena. You remember what she warned us about; they're up to so much more than just a simple abduction. They needed her for something. I think it's a distraction, and Katarina agrees. There's a much larger picture here, and we need to be prepared. I for one am not happy sitting around, waiting for Une to get 'approval' to make a move.  _L'Ombre_ needs to make the first move now and eliminate Lavie and his plan before he can make it reality."

The two sat in silence, quietly pondering. "I'm not a planner, Catalonia," Wufei finally said.

"How unlike you to admit your failings! You must really be off your game."

"Shut your trap," Wufei barked harshly. "This isn't just about me. If I write this up and we fail, who knows what could happen? My entire colony was a biological weapon. I know the dangers of what could be lurking on that colony, not to mention the population. There's a million ex-cons and soldiers up there, all in Lavie's pocket, just waiting for us to go up there and do something stupid." He paused, collecting his thoughts briefly. "We don't even have close to the numbers among us to make a difference. It'd be a bloodbath."

Surprisingly, Dorothy smiled. "I think I have a few solutions for that," she said coyly, taking another sip.

"Do I want to know?"

"Let's just say blood is thicker than water, hmm?" The blond stood, grinning again at the shocked and nearly dismayed look on Wufei's face as he watched her turn and leave his small home, walking past Mingmei as she arrived home, arms loaded with groceries.

"What was she doing here?" Ming asked, putting the bags down and taking in the stupefied look on her husband's face. "Wufei, what's going on?"

The man groaned, slouching back into his chair and closing his eyes. "She's going to bring Bella back," he said, and Ming sat down gracelessly, rolling her eyes in disbelief.

"Well, you can't deny that it'll help the numbers." Ming reached a hand out and took his carefully. "You can't fight this, Wufei. We need all the help we can get."

* * *

"So you have seen her?" Katarina asked brusquely, stepping into Middie's suite. "Is it true?"

"Yeah. She looked okay, actually. Dyed her hair, but it's her, all right." Middie smiled, her feet resting on the coffee table.

"I don't see how you can be happy, Une. Is she not also in the care of Heero Yuy?" Trowa and Middie both froze, staring at her.

"How the hell did you know that? I never told anyone… Don't you  _dare_  tell Wufei," Middie growled. As a past spy, she knew the value of information better than almost anyone, and hated when it was thrown about loosely.

"As if I'm that stupid," Katarina snapped, stepping farther into the suite. "I worry for her. He had a great deal of… influence over her. If he can convince her to stay, we could lose her, not to mention lose sight of getting rid of this pest Lavie."

"I agree," Trowa said, the typically quiet man startling both women. "We know his alias, we're working on finding his address. We know where to look, we're going to find him and get her out of here. We need you and the others to work out how we're going to prevent whatever's going on here from reaching Earth. Can you do that?" Katarina nodded, seemingly both placated and chastised.

"Keep in touch," she murmured, turning quickly and leaving the apartment.

"Man... She's creepy." Middie pulled her hastily hidden laptop out of the plump, cushioned couch, reopening it and typing in a set of passcodes rapidly. "Okay. His place has to be one of these," she said, pointing to a few locations on a map she'd drawn up. "Relena escaped here, and they couldn't find her anywhere after here. I bet you it's one of these, right on this side street."

"Nice place," Trowa said. "Lavie really takes care of his people."

Midde scoffed disgustedly. "So does Relena, and she didn't have to indoctrinate us, control all the media we see, the food we eat, who we can interact with and where we can go either. This guy's a freak, Tro. We gotta get Relena outta here."

A sharp ringing disturbed their research, and Middie reached across Trowa, blushing slightly as she placed a hand between his legs for leverage, grabbing her phone. "Yo," she greeted before her face contorted into a glower. "I don't fuckin' care. What do you mean, you changed your mind? Yeah, just like that, I'm gonna believe you. What do you think I am, a moron?... Well, why… You can't be serious. She looked fine!... Well of  _course_  we found her, moron. That's why we're here! Look, you wanna pull a double agent? Prove it to me first." She jabbed at the  _OFF_  button angrily, throwing the phone onto the coffee table.

"Neil, I presume." Middie nodded her head, sighing hard.

"He's convinced that Lavie's all evil and crazy now, and wanted to help us. What a moron. We already practically have her in our hand! What the hell do we need him for?"

"There's more to this than just Relena, Middie," Trowa said quietly. "Don't lose sight of that. If we save Relena and doom anyone else, we'll disappoint her more than anything. She's prepared to lose her life for the safety of others. If Neil knows something, we need to find out what it is."

* * *

Heero sat up abruptly, panting. The living room was still quiet and dark, the artificial sunrise long past, sunlight shining into the slit between the blinds on the large patio door. Running his hands over his face, the young man stood up, shedding off the bedding and straightening his sweat pants. He stretched, raising his arms above his head and then swinging them, loosening his shoulders, trying to shake the unsettling feeling he had clouding his mind.  _She's too quiet_.

Heading upstairs, Heero saw that the door to his bedroom was slightly ajar, but the windows were completely shrouded, leaving the room dark and seemingly empty, save for the sound of Relena's breathing, punctuated by tiny, quieted sniffles.  _She hasn't cried since she's been here…_  Heero realized. He opened the door cautiously, attempting to keep from disturbing the young woman. From his vantage point by the door, Heero could see her lying on her side, legs curled up, chest contracting with sobs, her dark hair obscuring what he could have seen of her face. He stepped further in, hoping to be able to just grab his clothes for the day and leave without disturbing her.

"Tell me the date," Relena said, her voice calm and cold despite the sniffles he could still hear.

"March thirteenth," he replied quietly, not moving from where he stood, frozen, by the end of the bed. Relena turned her head and looked at him briefly, her eyes twin pools of pure misery, tears continuing to spill over. Finally, her look of calm collapsed, her face contorting as she turned back away from him, covering her face with her hands before weeping openly, the sounds of her sobs filling the room. "Relena what's wrong?" he asked, crossing to her side of the bed and sitting on the mattress.

"Nothing," she replied shakily, pushing him away with one hand, still covering her face with the other. "Please leave me alone." She took his hand in hers and pushed it away, electrifying Heero with the feeling of her skin.

"I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what's the matter." He shifted closer to her, leaning towards her prone form gently.

"My mother," she whispered, starting a whole new cascade of tears, her cries becoming increasingly mournful.

"Relena, your mother is fine," Heero said, trying desperately to soothe her.

"My mother is  _dead_ , you idiot!" She sat up, her brow furrowed menacingly as she stared at him. "She  _died_ , not that you would know anything about that. You left me alone! You never even asked, you never even  _looked!_  Do you know  _anything_  about what's happened to me? Do you even know what your own 'boss'  _did_  to me?" Hysterical now, Relena hit him, open handed, on the chest, pushing him away from her as she backed away down the bed. "God, I just want to go  _home_! Can't you please just let me go, please?"

Heero sat, stunned by the news. "Relena, no one ever said anything about your mother… how was I supposed to know?"

"Don't give me that! You planned my days down to the letter. You always knew where to find me, even while I was here! You didn't care! You would have left me here to die!"

"That's not true! I didn't know they were hurting you! I never would have let…. I didn't know!" Heero was exasperated now, troubled and hurt that Relena believed he would intentionally lead her to be treated as she was, locked away in Lavie's secret chambers.

"You work for him! I bet he practically worships the ground you walk on, for goodness' sake! How could you not know?"

"Because Lavie lied!" Heero finally spat, grabbing Relena's wrists to stop her punctuating assault on his abdomen. She stopped, staring at him wide-eyed.

"What do you mean, he lied?" Heero loosed his grip as she lowered her arms. "You really didn't know? You haven't told him where I am? Heero, why?"

He let her arms go harshly now, turning away slightly, letting his hands fall limp in his lap. "Because he lied to me. Us. He lied to us. They were supposed to keep you here, safe, not torture you. Not ever to hurt you." He looked over his shoulder at her, the pain evident behind his eyes. He lowered them quickly, avoiding her stare, instead looking at the impression of her legs beneath his thick downy comforter, her hands pressed against her knees. They sat there quietly for a time, Heero's eyes traveling along Relena's now darkly tanned skin, stopping briefly as he noticed, on each arm, several long, thin scars.

"What happened?" he asked, reaching out and grazing a thumb over one of the scars carefully. Relena wrenched her arm way, folding them against her chest.

"Nothing," she said defensively. "None of your business. Look, I'm sorry to have bothered you, but you have to let me go."

"What?" Heero asked, surprised at Relena's sudden ordering tone.

"If you don't, you know what will happen. If you turn me in now, you might be able to make a deal with Lavie." She looked away from him, her expression blank, her arms falling into her lap again, revealing those matching scars.

"I'm not… Just forget about it," Heero said, standing up from the bed.

"Wait, Heero," Relena said, and Heero closed his eyes, savoring the sound of her saying something as simple as his real name. "Don't go. I don't want to be alone, not today." Her clear blue eyes met his, a question in them he couldn't identify.

"Why are you doing this? I saw what they did to you, what Lavie let happen. Why would you even offer to go back?"

Relena smiled sadly, tears coming to her eyes, blinked back furiously by her long lashes. "Because I love you," she whispered quietly, lowering her gaze. "You came here to be free, to be around people who could understand you and let you live your life. You deserve to have that, not be trapped here with me."

"Relena…. I was never 'trapped' with you. I never wanted to leave…"

"But you did. You did leave me, Heero. You just  _left_." Tears tracked down her face, running along her pristine cheeks, dripping off her upturned nose.  _How do you do this to me?_ Heero thought, feeling his heart practically constrict as he realized, in person, the pain he had caused the woman before him.  _How do you make me feel so much?_  Heero climbed further onto the bed, pressing his palms to Relena's cheeks, smoothing away her tears with his thumbs.

"I never wanted to go," he nearly whispered.  _You have no idea how much I wanted_ not _to go._  He kissed her then, softly, and for the first time since he was the best man at Duo Maxwell's wedding, Relena didn't struggle, pressing her lips back against his, taking his hands in hers, reaching out and feeling his arms, chest and face. Heero could practically feel the tension drop off both of them, the curtain of hurt, questions and deception that had separated them falling. They separated briefly, and Heero pressed his forehead against Relena's, sighing. "I'm so sorry," he whispered, but Relena shushed him quickly, pressing a finger to his lips.

"Don't, Heero," she whispered, leaning back and pulling him over her by his shoulders. "Just be with me. Don't leave me alone." Heero all too readily complied, pressing his lips against hers again, pressing a hand into the bed next to her head, his other tangling in her long, darkened hair.

* * *

The two soon collapsed, breathing heavily, onto the sweat-wetted sheets. Heero rolled onto his back, resting his head on the pillow, his thoughts quickly slowing, his mind clearing of the overwhelming fog of desire.  _Oh, god_ , he thought, remembering Relena's reaction to their kiss days before,  _she's going to murder me_. He stared at the young woman's back, watching her breathing gradually slow as she faced away from him. Finally, she turned her head his way, resting her head on her pillow. The artificial sun was setting now, and Relena moved closer to Heero, settling her head onto his shoulder, placing an arm against his chest. Sighing, she settled into his embrace and quickly fell into a deep sleep, her breathing even and restful, making Heero confident that tonight, at least, she would have sweet dreams.

 


	19. Run Along

_April 2, A.C. 185, Brussels_

" _Relena, this is madness!" Rolling her eyes, the young blond refused to face her accuser, instead staring through the chain link fence at the restless ocean waves. "You can't just take off to space! I don't care how safe you think it is!"_

" _My father is going, and I want to go with him. There's so many rumors flying around… I want to know the truth." She smiled now, watching the water slowly move along the beach, cresting and foaming before returning back to where it came._

" _And if these machines exist? If this… 'operation' or whatever actually happens? Who do you think their first target will be? Your own father! If anything you should be talking him out of this!" Neil was infuriated at this point, pushing himself against the metal fencing in front of her. "Don't ignore me, Relena. Please. Don't go out there."_

" _Neil, don't be so dramatic." Turning away from him, Relena started walking back in the direction of her home. "My father is no Heero Yuy, he's no threat to anyone. He may not be well liked within the Alliance, but he does the job he was assigned the way he is supposed to. That isn't a crime." The two walked in silence for a time, Neil unable to find a hole in her argument. Finally, his expression brightened, and Relena sighed, bracing herself._

" _So why are you hiding out here? Pagan's going to worry, and you'll be sorry…"_

" _I'm not hiding. I'm waiting."_

_Neil had never been one for dealing with anything cryptic. "Waiting for whom, exactly?"_

" _Relena! We've been waiting for you!" Patricia Collins and Eva Arian, two of her good friends and fellow members of her little 'order' stood a few meters away, staring at Neil somewhat warily._

" _Relena, don't go," Neil whispered, taking ahold of her hand. "You're not doing this just because you can. You're doing this to get information, aren't you? Relena, what are you planning?"_

_Relena smiled, crinkling her eyes as she took his hand and loosed it from hers. "I would tell you, Neil, but you distinctly asked to be left out of this, and I honor my promises. Now, please. I'm late." Relena walked away, breathing deeply to calm her nerves. Over the past year, Neil had become one of her closest friends, and it hurt her that, though once so interested, he had completely abandoned the idea of being part of L'Ombre and thus, a big part of her life._

" _Everything okay?" Patricia asked, watching Neil as they walked away._

" _Are we doing the right thing? Why do we even keep doing this? Everything feels so unnecessary." She sighed, linking arms with the two girls conspiratorially. "We're only children."_

" _Exactly!" Eva shouted. "Which makes it all the better. No one can suspect a thing. Besides, we know war is coming. We know a lot more than half our own teachers do. I don't know about you, but I'm tired of being useless. You brought us all together for a purpose." Smiling, Eva skipped a bit, dragging Relena with her._

" _Has anyone heard from Wufei? I don't know how to get ahold of him now that he's been back in space… he won't answer my calls." The two other girls shook their heads._

" _He's pretty much a loner, Lena… we never really knew him well. What I want to know is, what's the deal with Dorothy? I saw her the other day and she walked right past me! Talk about rude!"_

_Relena pursed her lips. "I can't blame her. She's in a difficult place, especially with Treize and her grandfather in places of power. It's better for us all if we let it go. Dorothy can't afford the extra risk of being seen with us when her family's already under fire."_

_Pattie shook her head. "The mafia. Can you believe that? It's just_ so A.D. _I didn't even know those things existed anymore."_

_Relena arched a brow, disbelieving. "And what, exactly, would you call L'Ombre then? There's no difference, except that we're not inherently violent."_

" _Except when someone gets between Candace and birthday cake," Eva laughed, and for a moment Relena felt nearly normal._ Are we doing the right thing _? She thought, looking past Patricia at the ocean_. We are only children… can't that be enough?

* * *

Relena woke before she opened her eyes, a mix of horror and disbelief running through her veins.  _It was a dream. That's all._  She tried desperately to keep herself from panicking as she heard, distinctly, Heero's deep and even breathing next to her. She silently thanked god for the scheduled heat the day before, making it too uncomfortable to stay cuddled together for long. Taking a deep and daring breath, Relena sat up, swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood up, trying desperately to make as little noise as possible. Turning her head, she watched as Heero shifted slightly, repositioning his pillow before settling back to sleep, snoring lightly.

 _Okay, Relena_ , she coached herself.  _Grab what you need and leave._  She quickly picked up some clothes she had left on the floor the evening before, fumbling around in the dark slightly before she could find exactly what she looked for before practically scrambling out of the room.  _Now, shut the door_. She held the doorknob in the open position carefully, letting it turn back into place carefully as possible before letting go and backing away down the hall. Her eyes had dark adjusted slightly, and Relena could see the kitchen light had been left on downstairs, giving her enough illumination to navigate the stairs without tripping. Reaching the bottom of the stairs, Relena pulled on a pair of panties and blue jeans, flinching even at the tiny sound of the zipper as she fastened it. Pulling on a t-shirt, she continued into the kitchen, opened a cupboard and pulled out a nearly fully outfitted backpack.

"Okay," Relena said out loud, wincing as she realized that she had been careless enough to make any extra noise. Opening the bag, Relena inspected the contents briefly before closing her eyes, steeling herself.  _Get out_ , her mind reminded her, and Relena stood, slinging the bag over her shoulder. Putting it down in the hallway, Relena pulled on a pair of socks before walking into the living room. There, resting in the corner, was Heero's gun safe. She approached it warily, almost completely sure that, knowing Heero, it would be more secure than her bank accounts in Switzerland.  _Thankfully, he's been careless_. Reaching the safe, Relena pulled on the handle, opening the door easily.  _Unlocked. God. This is really happening_ , she thought to herself. Looking over the small collection of arms, Relena grabbed a small handgun, a clip of ammunition and closed the door quickly.

Finally, Relena heaved a breath, trying desperately to calm her now churning stomach, and, nearly without pausing, grabbed the bag, slung it over her shoulder, slipped into her shoes, opened the front door and closed it behind her. Loosing the bag for a moment, Relena took a map out of a side pocket, looked at it briefly, turned and walked away.  _Now, don't you dare look back_.

* * *

_June, A.C. 191, Brazil_

" _Dorothy, I don't think you understand exactly what I'm looking for," Relena said, trying to end the conversation as gracefully as possible._

" _You want people you can depend on to play your little game. I'm far from stupid, Miss Relena. You want people you can control. Who better than family?" The two girls walked, quietly, through the streets of New York City, the surrounding chatter and city sounds drowning out their abnormal conversation._

" _This isn't about control, it's about safety in numbers. This only started because of people like me, people like both of us, who don't want to remain useless. The networking opportunities in itself are endless…"_

" _And what would the purpose of that be, exactly? You want to be useful, yet refuse to admit that you plan on using your admitted numbers to exert control of any situation! Miss Relena, that's simply preposterous." Dorothy smiled at the younger girl, taking her hands and holding them in front of her. "I can help you. I know a lot of people who would love nothing more than to work for the causes of someone like you. You're so charismatic and energetic, it's no wonder lowly little teenagers like us can't resist you! Imagine what you could do with a little power backing you up!" Relena pulled her hands away from the other girl, pretending to ignore what she had said, but the words practically rang in her ears._

" _I don't want power," she whispered, turning away. "I've seen what it does to people. We need to all find a way to work cooperatively, not make everything based on the might of one person or how nice they sound when they speak!" Relena swallowed, walking away. "My own father hardly sees his family. Why would I want that for myself?"_

_Dorothy shook her head slightly, as though she were trying to explain a concept to a child and failing. "Because you are different, Miss Relena. People look up to you. Look at the following you have just of students! Imagine what you could do with that alone…"_

" _No." Relena turned, pointing a finger at Dorothy harshly. "It will_ never _happen. These are my companions, my friends. I would never put them in danger, especially for something as futile as a war."_

 _Laughing, Dorothy clasped her hands behind her back and veered off down a side street and into the city. "That's the problem with humans, Relena. You can always tell them what to do, and with someone like you, they'd probably listen, but you can never tell them what_ not _to and them to behave."_

* * *

"One-twenty-seven Beechwood Drive," Relena murmured to herself, trying to distract her mind from the memories that came flooding back to her with every step.  _He trusted you once_ , her conscious mind interjected, and she woman felt guilt flood through her.  _He loved you, once._

"One-twenty-seven Beechwood Drive," she intoned again, holding the map shakily in her hands, forcing herself to walk at a reasonable pace. After having been out with Heero, even in daylight, she knew, she hoped, her disguise was good enough to last until her destination. "…. Four more blocks."

"Hey, sweetheart! You shouldn't be out here all alone at night! You need a ride?" a congenial looking older man looked out his car window at her, and Relena remembered what Heero had said.  _"Here, everyone works for Lavie first_."

"No, thanks," she said, smiling to him and showing him the map. "I'm just headed to a friend's place, it's not too far. Besides, the weather's beautiful!" She waved and kept walking, but the cab driver followed her slowly.

"Well, alright, love. Be careful, though. It's practically the dead of night!" He sped away, headlights helping illuminate the street for her temporarily. Her legs were stronger now, benefitting from hours of being left alone with little else to do but exercise in Heero's basement gym and read. Turning a corner, Relena had found the street she was looking for.

"God, this better be the right place," she thought, her mind racing as she tried frantically to plan escape attempts, knowing she could not afford to be wrong. Stepping up to the front door, she looked in the side window. The small townhouse was similar to Heero's as far as she could see, but the house was pitch black. Screwing all her courage, Relena stepped forward and quickly pushed the doorbell, adrenaline making her pulse beat loudly in her ears.  _Should I ring it again_? She pondered her next move before nearly jumping out of her skin at the sight of a light turning on and steps moving inside the house.

"What the heck, Caden?" Neil's voice sounded behind the door, and for a brief second Relena remembered exactly where the man's allegiance lay, terrifying herself. The door opened and, much like her reunion with Heero a month before, Neil and Relena stood, shocked, before she dove in the door and closed it behind her.

"What… what in the hell are you doing here?" Neil asked, watching her as she walked into the house, turned off the hall light and put down her bag.

"You told me to escape, I did it. Were you really unaware Lavie no longer had me?" She stared at him, her eyes cold, hoping her expression gave away neither the overwhelming fears nor deep-seated hopes that were flooding her mind.

"We knew," Neil said, "but why didn't you come to me? Where have you been?" his voice had changed now, one of disbelief and relief, as though he were finding a long lost sister.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you, but I'm going to," she said, kicking off her shoes and collapsing into a chair, realizing many of the furnishings in Neil's home were similar to Heero's own. "Sit, this is going to take some time." Clearing her throat, Relena leveled with Neil. "You left me in prison, Neil. While my previous… caretaker… may not have been, you knew what they did to me. Why?"

Neil looked at her, threading his fingers together nervously. "There's more at play here than you can understand, Relena." She laughed, eerie sound filling the previously silent house.

"Try me," she said, leaning back in her chair. "I know that Lavie wants to drop this colony. I know he wants to use you and his other citizens to claim the others in his name. He's going to kill billions of people, Neil, and you are helping him." Neil sat, open mouthed with surprise. "I'm not stupid, Neil. I came here to find the truth, and I did. Unfortunately, there was a cost," she said, and she looked away, angry.

"Relena, I'm so sorry," Neil whispered, and Relena held a hand up to him.

"The cost was not mine.  _L'Ombre_  has reformed itself, and there will be consequences for us all." She paused again, letting the news sink in. Saying it aloud was a entirely different sensation than thinking about it, and Relena had been unprepared for the new kind of apprehension that brewed in her stomach. "They've come for me. They have a good enough idea of what's going on here to know that you all have to be stopped. They will come, and they will fight you. Many of you may die."

Neil shook his head. "I thought you said  _L'Ombre_  was dead. Once the war began you let it die. You had promised."

"Someone gave me an excellent piece of advice, once," Relena said, pulling a water bottle out of her bag and taking a drink. "You can tell people what you want them to do and they will drink it up, but take the choice away, and they will hate you. Tell a child to play, and he will, but the moment you tell him to stop, it's all he can think about. We were children, Neil, and they wanted to play. Apparently," she said wryly, "they still do."

"You think that's why this colony exists. Relena, you're ridiculous. Is there  _anything_  you won't blame yourself for?" He stood up, throwing his hands in the air before walking away.

"I told soldiers they could no longer fight. Weapons manufacturing is minimal at best, and they were forced to live normal, placid lives. It was more than most were ready for, apparently."  _Heero_ , she thought, remembering how she had left him in the night.  _Did I ask too much?_  "It doesn't explain this new violence, though. Lavie has given them all the freedoms they could ask, accepting their identities as killers instead of them being hidden and persecuted on Earth or other, pacifist colonies. All he wants in return is for you all to use those skills for his purpose."

Neil looked at her, his dark cheeks becoming flushed with anger. "That's preposterous! He's not going to drop this colony! I work hand in hand with the man. We know that he wants to take other colonies and even some parts of the Earth, but it's only to liberate them from people like you, who want to just snuff out the past decade as though it never existed!"

Relena looked at him as though he were a wayward child. "Pretty words. You're telling me that since they caught me, since I escaped, nothing has changed? Tell me; if his problem is with the laws of the Earth, or with Quatre's rulings on weapons use, or even with our interpretation of history, why kidnap me? What part, other than performing my job, makes me the focus of his vendetta?"

"You're insane." He walked back to the front door, staring at it. "You need to leave, Relena."

"Like hell am I going out there," she said, and Neil whirled around, shocked not only at her language, but that she would so vehemently stay.

"Why? Tell me where you've been, Relena. You look…"  _delicious_ , he wanted to say, but he settled for "healthy. Someone took care of you. Who do you have here on this colony? Whoever they are, they'll be found, Relena. If your little 'shadows' are running around here, they need to leave."

Relena turned in her chair and crossed her legs, clasping her hands around her knee. "Does your friend Caden look familiar to you, ever? When you met him, did he remind you of anyone else?" Neil narrowed his eyes, thinking. "I know why you left  _L'Ombre_ , why you left Europe and ran away. When the war began you watched me turn to someone else. Do you remember who that was?"

"Heero Yuy," Neil spat before audibly gasping, pressing his back against the door.

"Your 'friend', Caden, is Heero Yuy. By chance I found him, and he cared for me, keeping me away from Lavie, but also from you, Middie, and Trowa Barton."

"They're all here? How…. What in the hell is going on?" Neil's legs looked weak as Relena reached into her bag, pulled out a gun and aimed it at him.

"Neil, my dear. You seem to have forgotten something vital about me. Not only do I run with Gundam pilots, I run among shadows." She stepped closer, a grin overtaking her features. "When you run among shadows, you learn quickly never to loose your footing."


	20. Backfired

_December 27, A.C. 197, Brussels_

" _Tell me what's happening!" a female voice shouted, and Heero tried desperately to open his eyes._ Relena…

" _Not now, Relena! Get back and out of the way before we just run you down ourselves. He didn't do this to let you die here! Get in the car, now!" Sally Po pushed her way along, her voice throbbing through his brain, too loud, too close._

" _I'm coming over there whether you like it or not! You have no right to keep me away!" Had he been fully conscious, Heero may have laughed. After all that had happened, after the horror of being trapped in the bunker with Barton and his cronies, Relena still wanted to sacrifice and stay by his side. Sally sighed, frustrated, turning her attention as she ran alongside the stretcher from the young woman back to him. He felt her warm hands on his neck and realized that he was freezing cold._

" _He's losing blood, I think it's internal. He's o negative, get some now and have it ready for transfusion in the ambulance. Heero, can you hear me?" He turned his eyes to her slightly, and she smiled. "Good. Stay conscious until we get you in the transport, alright? Can you do that? Okay. I'm going to give you some medication; do you have any allergies? Of course not." Heero knew why she was unsurprised; the 'perfect soldier' had to be easy to maintain. He had been chosen for more than convenience or intelligence; he had been chosen because he had no allergies or intolerances, no mental weaknesses, no physical infirmities. "Push the morphine, now!" Sally shouted again, and Heero realized he had let his eyes drift nearly closed._

" _Relena…" he said out loud, and Sally shushed him, almost motherly._

" _She's fine. She's fine, Heero, you saved her. You saved all of us. Now stay with me, you'll see her once we get to the hospital, apparently." Heero couldn't understand why Sally was so irritated by the girl's presence._ So what if she wants to see me?  _Heero was lifted and slid into the ambulance, the doors slamming by his feet just as it lurched away. "You're doing great. We'll be there in less than five minutes. You should thank yourself for the favor… nothing like a Gundam to clear out traffic. Whoa, whoa, stay down!" She shoved her hands against his chest, pushing him back onto the gurney. "It's practically ashes, Heero. They're taking care of it. Relax, relax."_

_By the time they had reached the hospital, Heero could barely stay awake, the pain in his chest and back overwhelming him, the medications flowing through his veins making his eyelids feel as though they weighed as much as bricks. "It's okay, Heero. Sleep. We're going to put you under, I think you need surgery. Sleep. When you wake up, she'll still be here."_

* * *

Even before he woke, Heero Yuy knew, deep in his mind, even in his dreams, that something was horribly wrong.  _Why did I dream about that?_  He asked himself, searching his semi-conscious mind, trolling his memories carefully. " _When you wake up, she'll still be here."_  The memory echoed behind his eyes, and Heero quickly realized the relevance. Sitting up, he threw back the covers and saw the empty bed, morning light seemingly pressing against the curtains, the rest of his home completely silent. He didn't bother calling her name or even searching the house; he knew she was gone. Standing up and leaving the bed, he looked around his room briefly before stepping into the shower, letting the hot water run over his body. Her shampoo and body wash was still there, and the smell of her skin lingered maddeningly on his own. Grabbing a cloth, Heero lathered and washed angrily, hurt and betrayal leeching into his every thought.  _You're an idiot, Heero. An idiot! Now you're both dead, and it's entirely your own fault._

Heero put off shaving, pulling on a clean set of clothes, opening the drawer and seeing all of Relena's temporarily wardrobe still neatly folded in the top of the dresser. He sighed, picked up his wallet, keys and telephone, and headed quickly to work.  _If they find her, I'll be the third to know_. Opening his car door, Heero found one of Relena's old sweaters, her empty coffee cup from a few nights previous still in the cup holder, pink lipstick smeared on the rim. It seemed to taunt him, reminding him of how only a few hours before she had been safe and warm in his bed, and had chosen, knowing all the dangers, to run away from him.  _Now you know how it feels_ , some inner voice said, and it drove Heero over the edge. Grabbing the cup, he rolled down the far window and pitched it out furiously, watching it bounce along the road for a brief second before he sped off toward work.

"Goddammit, this is bullshit!" Pulling into the lot near the towering office building, Heero barely even looked at the gate guard before pulling into a space, throwing the car into park and taking the keys out of the ignition. "Get it together," he said just as he noticed a bright white piece of paper in the empty holder.  _Must have forgotten this before_ , he mentally muttered, grabbing the sheet and his suitcase out of the front seat, stepping out, slamming the door, and continuing across the lot.

"Hey, Caden!" Neil shouted, clearly having arrived just before him. "So we gotta meet with Lavie right away. Hey! Are you listening to me or what?" Heero continued walking, his partner's perpetually cheerful demeanor grating on his nerves. "Dude, wait!" Heero turned, his nearly patented glare painted on his face. "I gotta talk to you… something happened last night and I know you'll hear me out. There's no one else I can… I just need you to hear me out." Heero looked at the young man for a moment, his glare falling at the coincidence in timing. Just as he opened his mouth to speak, another voice interrupted him.

"My boys! About time you got here! No lollygagging, we've got big plans for today!" Lawrence Lavie himself exited his own car, putting an arm around each young man and guiding them into the building. "You simply won't believe what's happened.  _Such_  luck!" Both became increasingly uneasy, both fretting about the whereabouts and wellbeing of the same woman. "Come on, come on. We've much to discuss." Entering the elevator, Heero apologized, stepping out of the way of a young redhead who smiled at him shyly before staring at the floor. "Good morning, Stephanie. I trust you had a restful weekend?"

"Absolutely, sir! And Mr. Creed was incredibly helpful. He's waiting downstairs for you." She bowed slightly before darting foreward and clicking one of the floor buttons labeled  _B2_. Heero looked out of the corner of his eyes to Neil, who was visibly sweating now, his hands twisted around each other as he turned to look at his friend. The door opened, and Neil exited just behind Heero, both following after Lavie.

"Man, I'm so fucking sorry," he whispered, and Heero turned to him.

"For what? You didn't do anything."

"Relena's at my fucking house!" Neil looked back up at Lavie and his companion carefully, hoping their footsteps drowned out his speech. "She just showed up, and… fuck. He's going to think you helped me. Heero, I'm so sorry…"

"What did you call me?" Heero asked, his voice suddenly echoing as they entered a chamber carefully.

"Only by your real name, Mr. Yuy," Lavie said, gesturing to a chair. "I suggest you take a seat. Chances are you will be here for some time." Heero looked over his shoulder but could see no immediate escape, save for the elevator in the distance.  _Comply_ , his instincts told him, and he sat carefully in the chair, facing his accuser. "Don't be afraid, young man. I know who you are. In fact, I have known since I hired you. I really wish you'd been more forthcoming with me, it could have saved us so much time!" Lavie snapped a hand and waved his fingers toward himself, and another young man moved out of the shadows, placing another chair down nervously. "What I'm a tad miffed about, my boy, is that you didn't tell me you so intimately knew our own little prisoner."

Heero sat, impassively, unsure of what to say. "No sense denying it young man. You knew our intentions for the young Minister, yet you still complied with our plans. That's quite the betrayal for someone you had such an intimate relationship with. What made you want to leave that?" Heero swallowed, but said nothing. "I need to know the truth, Mr. Yuy. You are one of my favorites and truly indispensible. Your knowledge of the Preventer organization as well as the defense mechanisms of the Earth and other colonies means I can't afford to kill you, unfortunately." Lavie stood, approaching Neil.

"You, on the other hand, are quite the enigma, aren't you? There's even less information on you than on a Gundam pilot, for goodness' sake! The only thing I could find was that you moved here shortly after your parents deaths and stayed even after the war. This has been your home for some time, and yet we know nothing about you. Why did you join this cause? You would have been free to leave."

"I was free to leave, but I wanted to stay. I don't believe it's right to force anyone to change their identities or their jobs or their lives just because the 'higher power' thinks that war is some disgusting excuse for a purpose. War is completely natural; there will always be conflict because someone always has to be in control. Until you eliminate the aristocracy's perpetual need to control us mere soldiers and 'commoners', there will always be those who will fight back." Lavie clapped his hands, as though he had made the pretty speech come forth himself.

"Excellent words, young man. Is this also your belief, Heero?"

"Not particularly," he answered honestly, leaning back slightly in his chair, examining the overly nervous and still silent young man, the woman next to him holding the file folder to her chest, smiling.

"Then why come here? As a Gundam pilot, one would think it would be your purpose to be welcomed here, to live your life in safety, without having to hide. Why hide your identity?"

Heero looked away, remembering the few days before he had finally left Earth for this colony. "I committed a crime. I betrayed the only friends I had, and I hurt… I hurt someone I cared about. I just couldn't stay there, anymore. I was never supposed to live beyond the war. They should have lived their lives without me, happy and safe, and all I seemed ever to bring was more pain and regrets. Leaving freed them from that."

"So you wanted to protect your little Princess from the blood on your hands, hmm?" Lavie sat back down, taking the folder from Stephanie carefully. "She was quite infatuated with you, you know. I have here some transcripts from her therapy sessions. Apparently someone talked her into meeting with a therapist, although that 'professional' turned out to be a friend of hers. Regardless, one thing has become quite clear: these people are not only looking for Relena Darlian, they are looking for you as well." He opened the file, flipping through a few pages. "Apparently when you left Relena suffered from pretty troubling psychological episodes. I suppose we have you to thank for that! We had been hoping that killing her mother would set her off, but it appears she was well on her way because of your little stunt."

"What are you talking about?" Heero asked, nausea forcing bile up his throat.

"Well, her death was framed as an accident, of course, and within months the little Minister had managed to hospitalize herself twice for what was recorded as "accidental injury". Personally, I've never seen anyone accidentally slit open vital arteries  _twice_ , but I suppose it's possible." Lavie let the gravity of his statement sink in. "Now. We have this tiny, sick, mentally unstable young woman running around our colony unsupervised. Think of the trouble she could get into, the pain she could cause others or herself if we don't find her… I know that isn't what you want. Heero, if you know where she is, you must tell me. It's completely imperative."

Heero looked at Neil briefly before mustering his courage and making his response. "Are you going to drop this colony?" he asked, and Lavie looked at him, briefly shocked, before laughing.

"Of course not! Who gave you that idea? No, no, Heero. I've shown you the blueprints, albeit briefly, but I figured you'd have locked those away up in that miraculous brain of yours by now," he demonstrated, tapping a temple with one finger. "No, I've got something much better planned for the Earth. Z78 is a compound invented by my scientists here. We plan to use vessels on this colony to transport it to Earth and infect the people there."

"Infect them with what?" Neil interjected, cringing for speaking out of turn.

"It is a simple virus, nothing deadly or even dangerous. It actually only affects women and the ovum, should they be outside the body, making them inviable."

"You're ensuring that they can't reproduce," Heero surmised.

"Precisely. The people on Earth have grown complacent during this time of peace, especially the governmental workers. Indoctrinating children is one of the best ways to keep foul ideas like religion and pacifism growing and expanding, and we plan to simply eliminate that possibility altogether."

"What about the people living there who aren't pacifists? You can't sterilize billions of people simply because you disagree with the majority opinion."

Lavie stood, buttoned his suit and continued out of the large, empty space, the others following him slowly. "We plan to announce our intentions very soon, gentlemen. We have prepared this colony for a massive influx of people, as I'm sure you've noticed from the construction. We will simply offer them a choice: allow our way of life, accept it, and live happily among us. The other option is simply to continue their lives on the Earth and let their ideas die with them, or their currently existing children's. The results are, unfortunately far less instantaneous than death, but I believe that life can be preserved in this case." Entering the elevator, Lavie called them over. "Don't dally, we have work to do." Reaching the eighth floor, Lavie ushered the two men out. "I'm sure you two have much to discuss. I want a rough plan of infiltration for our closest neighboring colonies drawn up by tonight. Expect to work overtime."

"But sir!" Neil called, approaching the elevator opening. "What about Relena Darlian?"

Lavie smiled an identical grin to the woman next to him; feral and menacing. "Don't worry about Relena, boys. We'll deal with her." The door chimed and closed quickly, leaving the two standing in the corridor. They stood there for a while before Heero abruptly turned and walked down the hall a while before finding an empty room. Stepping inside, he turned to see if Neil was following him and instead was met with a fist to the face.

Losing his balance temporarily, Heero threw his hands up, preparing for a continued attack, but Neil simply closed the door and stood near the entrance. "What the fuck is wrong with you?  _You!_  Jesus Christ… this is  _not_  happening. You are not going anywhere near her again, you got me?" Neil raised his hand to hit Heero again, and to his surprise the famed Gundam pilot actually flinched away, frustrating Neil further. "What is  _wrong_  with you?" he shouted, shoving the other man away and beginning to pace the room. "I can't believe this. You are Heero Yuy?"

Heero simply nodded, and Neil narrowed his eyes at him. "Why didn't you just tell us? You could have fuckin' told me! Man, I trusted you. If you so much as breathe a word of this, I'll… fuck!"

"Calm down, I'm not going to tell anyone," Heero affirmed, sitting down at one of the few chairs littered around the nearly empty conference room. "So she's alright, then?" Neil was shaken by his interest, realizing he was the one who had coached Relena back from the broken and starved prisoner he had convinced to escape into the strong, driven and completely pissed off woman living in his house.

"She looks good," he said, rolling his eyes at himself. "I mean healthy. She looks fine, but she's mad as a wet cat. I don't know what in the fuck you did, but she knows way too much. More than even we do, I think." He sat down near his partner, resting his elbow on the table and his head in his hand.

"I'm not surprised. It's her job to be on top of this stuff."

"I'm pretty sure 'get kidnapped by your ex-boyfriend's new cult clan and kick some ass' wasn't in the job description," Neil replied wryly.

"I wasn't her boyfriend," Heero said compulsively, and Neil rolled his eyes again.

"She loved you, you slept with her, you lived with her. Close enough, I'd say. Man, what the fuck did you do? Why not just turn her in? Now  _I_  have to figure out what the hell to do… God." Taking out his phone, Neil flipped through a few emails restlessly, typing out a few of his own, tilting his phone purposefully away from Heero's line of sight.

"What are you going to do with her?" Heero asked, realizing Neil knew more about his history than the other man was letting on.

"I don't fucking know! She pulled a gun on me last night! I'm not doing  _anything_  with her but leaving her the hell alone. What were you going to do?"

Heero closed his eyes. "I have no idea. Other people are here, looking for her. They know she's alive and they know I'm here… it's only a matter of time before more come. It was either let her go and hope that my old colleagues had some mercy, or turn her in and hope that Lavie didn't murder me with his bare hands."

"Fuck," Neil said, summing up the situation neatly. "I'm in the same damn boat. But how do you know Middie?" he asked, cocking his head slightly.

"Middie?" Heero asked, but his question went unanswered as his phone rang. "Yes? Mhm. Fine." Hanging up, he stood. "They want us outside, I guess." Neil looked at him before patting him on the back.

"Sorry about hitting you. There's just… a lot more history with Relena and I than you know." Heero accepted the apology with a terse nod before they both left, walking down the corridor and taking the elevator to the ground floor. Upon arrival, they saw groups of Lavie's closest workers, standing as though they had been waiting for them.

"I guess the question is," Neil said, pausing at the end of the small crowd, "who are you fighting for, Lavie, or Relena?"

Without turning, Heero said, quietly, "I don't know." As soon as the sound left his mouth, he heard the safety click, Neil's gun resting against the back of his head.

"Sorry, pal. Wrong answer." Neil stepped forward, but not before a gasp was heard as another  _click_  sounded.

"As awesome as it would be for you to blow his damn brains out, I'm afraid I can't let you do that," a woman said, and Neil turned quickly, taking in a shock of blond hair, eyes he knew to be grey obscured by a large pair of aviator sunglasses, her white teeth showing as she smiled.

"Middie?" Neil practically shouted. "What in the  _fuck is happening here_?"

"Good to see you too, sweetheart! Now, as great as this reunion is, we're leaving before we all get murdered, mmmkay?" Turning slightly while keeping her gun trained on him, Middie looked over the group of people closest to her. "You," she said, pointing the gun at Heero's temple, "are coming with me, and trust me, you aren't going to like it. Your choice, fucker: start walking or start dying."

 


	21. The Call

"You," Heero said, the word barely holding even an accusation, but Neil still nodded.

"Sorry, Heero. Sometimes you just have to go with the highest bidder." Disengaging the safety, Neil stowed his gun away, strolling over to Middie.

"If we're the highest bidder, this place really  _has_  gone to shit," Middie said, pulling out another gun and aiming at Neil. "Now. You both get bonus good-boy points for not killing Relena on sight, however hiding her from both your boss and from us? Bad plan."

"I told you!" Neil said, horrified, and the blond smiled at him menacingly.

"Good for you! Now get in the car." A heavily tinted vehicle pulled up behind them quickly as if on cue, one of the doors thrown open from the inside. "Go, go on!" Middie said, gesturing with the weapons. "And don't worry, they're not going to kill you, Neil. As for  _you_ ," she said, following Heero into the car, "I'm not gonna make any promises." Slamming the door in his face, Middie backed away, the car's tires squealing as it took off. Turning around, she took off her sunglasses, sweeping her long hair back off her face with them. "Well, kids, get back in there! Looks like we got some phone calls to place."

* * *

" _You're sure about this? It could be a trap." Trowa paced the suite, feeling unusually nervous. "You hated this guy less than two weeks ago; why trust him now?"_

" _Because he has nowhere else to go, and I made him an offer he can't refuse." Middie put her phone down, having spent the past few minutes furiously typing out responses and queries to at least a dozen unnamed or unfamiliar people to Trowa._

" _And what was that, exactly?"_

" _Simple. I promised him we'd make Relena leave before we launch a take-over. He just wants to see her safe. He pleaded for us to save his ass, too…. Told him if he fights with us, he's at least got a somewhat better chance of living."_

_Trowa sighed. "Middie, we have to cause as few casualties as possible."_

" _I know, I know. Relena wouldn't have it any other way, anyways. Alright. I gotta meet some people, and then I'm going to go and pick up a few precious pieces of cargo. Neil's got Heero with him, gives me the chance to bag 'em both," pulling on a jacket emblazoned with the colony's name and number, FREE TO CHOOSE written on the back, Middie looked at him. "Oh, yeah. Look at me, all under-cover-like. Feels like the good ol' days." Approaching the taller man, Middie seized his shirt and pulled him down to her, kissing him deeply on the mouth._

" _You stay here. Knowing our little Princess, she's likely already halfway here."_

Trowa kept running through various memories from the past few weeks: their first sight of Relena, finding Heero, his nights spent with Middie, all turning over in his mind as he continued to pace the same section of floor, the rhythmic sound of his steps tapping against the floor. The door opened, and Trowa spun toward it, his heart leaping into his throat before he looked away, scoffing with disappointment.

"Dude, you  _have_  to stop walking! You're making us crazy!" Jesse walked in, almost closing the door on Liam, who scurried in after him. "Just sit down and chill! She's not gonna have any problems getting over here. It's friggin' Relena. She's lived this long here already." Sitting down in an armchair, Jesse flicked on the television, and both Liam and Trowa regarded him with stunned faces.

"Did Middie even say where she was coming from? Who knows how she's even going to get here… what if she gets caught on the way?... Wait. How does she know where we are?" Liam grew increasingly frantic with each question, practically shouting by the time he reached the last one. The door opening could barely be heard over his raised voice, but Trowa had tuned him out completely as he looked at their new arrival.

"They have this thing called 'the internet'. Fascinating the amount of information you can find on there." Relena walked in, put down a bag and threw her arms open, welcoming Trowa into them, squeezing him as he lifted her off the floor, both laughing. "God, I've missed you. How did you even get back here? And do I even want to know how you know Middie?" Smiling coyly, Relena stood up and kissed the tall man on the cheek. "She'd told me about you… She always thought you were the same boy she'd met back then. Guess that proves it."

Liam, recovering from his mild panic attack, slowly turned around and practically leaped at the young woman, reaching her just before Jesse dove off the couch and tackled both of them, the two twins shouting and laughing, greeting her back into their lives once again.

"Alright, okay! Okay, off now, please," Relena said, and the two boys let her go carefully. It was then that Trowa truly got a chance to take her in, her long hair restored to a bright, light blond, lighter than her original colour, her sun-kissed skin mostly covered by a slim windbreaker and jeans. "We have a lot to do, and I don't have much time to explain. I assume Neil called Middie?"

Trowa shrugged. "She didn't say, but she left in a hurry disguised like one of Lavie's people."

"Perfect. We need to call everyone we can, as soon as we can." Settling down at the kitchen table, Relena pulled a small black book out of her knapsack.

"What's that?" Liam asked, the three men joining her.

"It's a list. Look," she said, snatching the book away from Jesse's prying eyes. "Every name of every member of  _L'Ombre_  is in here. There will be people you know, some you don't, some that most don't even know are part of us. There will be people who are dead, people who we think are dead, and people who want us to think they're dead. Don't let that stop you. If anyone hangs up or gives you trouble, tell me, I'll call on them myself." She paused, sighing as she looked at Trowa. "I'd hoped it would never come to his, but these people," she said, holding up the book, "are some of the most trustworthy, dependable people I have ever met. They have stood by me for most of my life, and I owe them everything for that. To ask more of them, or any of you, is cruelty of the highest order, but we must.

"We can't win this fight alone. We'll need Preventers,  _L'Ombre_ , colleagues, gangs… Anyone with the ability to help us contain the insanity that's taken this colony."

"… 'Gangs', really?" Jesse laughed lightly before his expression darkened. "What is the best case scenario here? I mean, what are we really fighting?"

Relena put the book down on the table carefully, handling it as though it were an old Bible. "I'm not entirely sure, but it's not going to end well. They're targeting life on Earth. Lavie thinks that by eliminating the majority opinion who believe that war is wrong, he can fight with anyone he pleases to take power over the colonies."

"…. Didn't we just do this like… five years ago? I mean, after it failed like the first fifteen times, how do these megalomaniacs not go "gee, this whole 'conquering the universe' thing may just be a bad idea!"?"

Relena grimaced slightly. "It certainly feels that way… without the people in this book, without all of you, this cycle will keep continuing. I know that there are some on this colony who sympathize with pacifism, who see no need to resort to violence or a power-struggle to live their lives. We have to appeal to these people first. I'm hoping that if we can do that and get enough of our agencies on the inside, we can turn this whole colony and Lavie's plan upside down before it gets out of hand."

The three men nodded as she opened up the book. "Now, we need to work on this until Middie gets back. We've already contacted everyone on this colony through her and Neil, I assume, so… let's start with the 'a's'."

* * *

"Wufei, you gotta get in here," Grace Velasquez said, waving to him as she ducked in his office door. Standing up, Wufei locked his door from the inside before stepping into Grace's office across the hallway.

"What in the hell happened here?" Wufei asked. The tall desk chair swiveled around, and a tall woman with long, wavy black hair and distinct, large eyes the color of lilac sat, smiling.

"This happened, obviously," she said, gesturing down over her lean form. "And how are you doing, Mr. Chang?"

"Who, exactly, is this?" Grace asked, crossing her arms, her broad shoulders heaving with anger. "I walked in, and here she was. Obviously you know her. What's going on?"

"Sister!" a voice sounded behind them, and Dorothy Catalonia pushed her way in, sweeping past her audience and hugging her sister congenially, kissing her on both cheeks. "So good of you to come. Just  _wait_  until you see what's happened… Gosh, I just become more infatuated with that Relena Darlian every day!" Pressing her palms to her cheeks, the blond made the perfect model of a wooed young lady.

"Who doesn't?" her elder sister joked, taking her seat again behind the desk. "Now, Chang. What's all this I'm hearing about this 'Lavie' man? Seems like an issue for Preventer, not me."

Wufei sat down, closing and locking the door behind him. "The room secure, Grace?" he asked, and she nodded. "Good. Sit, we've got to lay some things out. Middie Une and Trowa Barton are friends of mine and fellow agents who are now on X-18997, the colony run by one Lawrence Lavie. Taking out his computer, he aimed a small projecting lens on it toward an empty wall, showing a picture of the now infamous politician. "His was one of the first colonies to claim independence upon Quatre becoming V.P., and since then they've generally been nothing more than a nuisance, the brains behind a few protests and small-scale attacks. In December, they kidnapped Relena, keeping her in prison until she escaped. Apparently Trowa and Middie have now found her and are looking for a way to get her out of the colony safely while making sure they don't draw the conflict onto Earth sooner."

Changing through a few slides, Wufei continued. "This is a technical file for what the colony's engineers are currently working on. I recognized it as soon as I saw it; they're clearly the blueprints for a mechanism allowing the colony to become a mass method of dispersing a biological weapon. What the weapon does, I don't know. I haven't found enough information yet. What I know is its' clearly meant for only certain victims, whom I believe to be the citizens of Earth."

Bella uncrossed and crossed her long legs, straightening her black dress. "So it comes down to another 'fight or die', hmm? These politicians, all they cause are problems. If it's not Treize's ass on the line, it's Darlian's." Sighing, she looked to Grace and Wufei. "You're asking me to disclose the members of my organization, my family, to you. What do we get in exchange?"

"Bella-donna, don't be so dramatic," Dorothy said, rolling her eyes. "He's giving you the chance to be part of something incredible! This can only bring good press to our family, regardless. Besides, who needs an excuse? Think of all the people you'll save, including Miss Relena. It's a no-lose situation… except for Lavie."

"I wouldn't say that," Grace said, and Wufei nodded in agreement.

"There are a lot of risks at stake. We just don't know what we're walking into up there, which is why we need to bulk up our numbers as much as possible. For all we know, every person on that colony is trained, armed and working for Lavie. Until I talk to Une, I can't even be sure we'll have any government-sanctioned method of attack." The three women nodded, and Bella stood.

"Well, best let me talk to her, then. I know her from when she worked for our cousin, may he rest in peace. She'll hear me out." Excusing herself, Bella Catalonia walked out of the room, closing the door behind her.

"Well, guess we'd best start making some calls then," Grace said, but Wufei shook his head.

"Middie claims to have it under control. We have a week to get everyone coordinated and set a time and date for our takeover. It's got to be as smooth and swift as possible so we can avoid any real combat, so we're gonna have to get as many people through the gates to the colony and on the inside before we pull the trigger."

"So you want to Trojan-horse Lawrence Lavie?" Grace asked, incredulous, drawing a smile from the typically stoic man.

"Exactly."

* * *

"No, I'm serious! Don't… fuck!" Jesse tossed his phone down, aggravation running high. "This is impossible. There's no way we can get through this whole list!" Laim put his own phone down, nodding in agreement.

"There's got to be thousands of names here, Relena. There has to be an easier way."

Relena put the book down, flipping her fingers through the pages absent-mindedly. "There is another way, but I'd been hoping to avoid it. Give me your computer, Trowa," she asked, and the man handed his laptop to her. She typed in a few things, opening up a few applications, her brow creased as she concentrated. Finally, she seemed to have accomplished what she wished.

"I know this seems ridiculous, but there's an emergency number we all have programmed, one that we all have the ability to use to contact some or all of our comrades. It signals the people who are closest first, then branches out. I think if I can get a strong enough signal for long enough, I should be able to get nearly everyone on the line at once."

Jesse put his forehead down on the table. "Why is that not the first fuckin' thing you tried?"

Relena grimaced slightly, narrowing her eyes. "There are risks with this type of thing. The call will be extremely traceable, as it is meant to alert the recipients as to the location of the person making the distress call… chances are anyone monitoring the communications on this colony will see it. There's also no insurance that everyone it reaches on this colony will still… be loyal to us." Lowering her blue eyes, Relena sighed.

"That has to be a risk we're willing to take. You're safe now, Relena. We have everything under control. Wufei's bringing up a plan as we speak to come up here and contain this thing. That said, Preventer isn't going to be enough. We need all the help we can get."

Relena nodded, steading herself before she typed in the secret number. It began broadcasting, and the first phones to ring were Jesse and Liam's, both chiming as they sat on the table. "Wow, I thought you were just shitting us," Jesse said. "But wait… if everyone's supposed to know this number, why don't we have it?"

"You live with your sister, that's why. She's going to kick the ass of whatever gets in your way long before anyone else will." Relena shushed them, waiting.  _11% complete_ , the screen read, and Trowa watched the number slowly climb.

"Does this just use the internet to make the call?" Relena nodded. "Seems incredibly insecure."

"Sometimes you just have to hide these things in plain sight," Relena responded, her voice sounding far away.

_14% complete._

* * *

_November, A.C. 193, L2_

" _Why are you hiding?" a small voice asked her, and Relena felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end as she turned around. "Hey, chill out, I'm not going to hurt you. I'm none too eager to be found out myself." The blond girl leaned against the brick wall of the surrounding building, keeping to the shadow of the alleyway, watching Relena as she watched her._

" _Go away," Relena finally said, turning back toward her quarry, watching the street carefully. "You're just going to draw attention."_

_The girl smiled, but kept from laughing with some obvious effort. "Says the Foreign Minister's daughter, hiding away in an alley on L2. Yeah, you're right. There's about a thousand better hiding places on this stretch of road than next to you. Peace." Relena couldn't tell if she used the slang word for its original purpose or as a slight to her father's position, but either way hearing it bothered her. The strange girl turned and went to leave through the far end of the alley, but froze as men's voices echoed inside. "Shit. Run!" The two girls turned and ran as fast and quietly as they could, dodging traffic as they shot out of the alley and into the nearby boulevard.  
_

" _Quick, this way!" Relena shouted, and Middie turned and followed her out of curiosity, intrigued that the girl was so familiar with the city's geography. They continued to run, only slowing as they reached the edge of a massive park. "Here, come with me," Relena said, holding out her hand. Middie followed her, and they stepped out behind a bunch of bushes onto a pathway leading into a beautiful simulated forest._

" _Wow. How'd you find out about this place?" Middie asked, fingering a few leaves as they passed by._

" _My father. It's restricted access but I'm allowed in when I want, so I come here a lot to get away…" Relena closed her mouth abruptly, as though she had said too much._

" _Well, cool. Thanks for saving me, 'Miss Darlian'. The name's Middie, by the way." Holding out her hand, she laughed as Relena shook hers tightly. "And what are you running away from, exactly? Nuns, governesses, trust fund monitors, bodyguards?"_

" _Worse," Relena said, and Middie realized that not only was Relena truly running from someone, but all the above, seemingly ridiculous options were completely viable options. "Teachers."_

_23% Complete_

" _You're kidding me. You go to school here, like… voluntarily?" Middie sat across from Relena at a nearby bistro, having navigated their way out of the park and forest and onto the other side of the 'city'._

" _I've never been to school on a colony before. It seemed like it could be interesting."_

" _Wouldn't catch me dead staying up here," Middie said, practically shuddering._

" _Why's that?" Relena asked, taking a drink of some sweet-smelling tea._

" _Never liked space. It's just… odd. Everyone's so friendly and strange. Never been my cup of tea… not to mention if it were like this on Earth I'd be dead out of work." She had simply ordered a Coke, annoyed that Relena had paid without asking her._

" _What are you doing here, then? 'Working'?"_

_Middie swallowed, but decided to tell the truth as she rarely did. "Someone paid me to find out some things. Nothing terribly interesting, a bit run of the mill, but when it comes to space it usually is."_

_Relena smiled. "It's definitely quieter up here, safer. I think that's why I like it; it was a nice escape from all the insanity on Earth. I don't know anymore though… it feels like big things are brewing up here. People are more on edge than I remember."_

" _That's for sure. I'm hoping shit calms down… I haven't gotten home in a while." Taking another drink, Middie watched as Relena regarded her with curiosity._

" _Don't you go to school?" Middie threw her head back and laughed, a loud, unabashed sound that most of the other patrons were clearly unused to, turning to glance at the two young women.  
_

" _Hell, no, lady. No time, and no money at that. I'm putting my brother's though school on Earth, just some public deal, nothing special."_

_Relena looked into her cup of tea. "Do you want to go to school with me?" she asked, and Middie looked at her strangely._

" _Who wouldn't? Doesn't matter, someone has to pay the bills."_

" _I will," Relena said, and Middie looked even more surprised than before. "I'd be willing to do that, for you. I can talk my dad into anything, and he'd see the merit in this. I'd get your brothers into a better school, get your parents looked after… Let me." Reaching over the table, she took Middie's hand. "Let me help you."_

" _You're crazy," Middie said, with little conviction._

" _No, but I like people, and I like you. You deserve to do better than being a teenaged spy. You should work on those skills in school and get a good job that can help people, rather than just working for whoever will pay you in cash. Come on, please?" Relena was smiling now, swigging down the last of her tea and standing up from the table. "Let's go. If we leave now, we can get back to school and get you registered this afternoon."_

" _Wait, wait. Aren't they gonna be pissed you're gone?" Middie trotted after the other girl, mystified._

" _Of course not, my lovely Middie! Who would be mad at me for meeting my best, favorite friend from the spaceport?" Winking, Relena took her new companion's friend and led her away._

" _This isn't the first time you've done this, is it?"_

" _Not even close."_

* * *

_44% complete_

* * *

"Where are you taking us?" Neil asked, and Middie almost laughed from the passenger seat.

"Get over it and enjoy the ride, Oppen. We're clearly not taking you off the colony, we're just getting you away for a little drive. Relax, enjoy the scenery." Signaling to the driver, Middie gave them directions to leave the 'city' portion of the colony, progressing farther and farther into the more open farming complexes. "I love this part of colonies. It's the only part that even looks close to the Earth. You're gonna  _love_  it out here."

Heero sat, silently looking out the window, which irritated Middie. "No questions, hm?"

"Where's Relena?"

"She's safe, and far away from you, although the two seem to be mutually exclusive anyways. Do you have any idea what you put her through? You're lucky you even got to see her alive." The driver shushed the blonde woman, who sighed and folded her arms.

The rest of the ride continued in silence until, finally, they arrived at a massive farm, clearly meant for some kind of grain operation. Pulling down the massive driveway, they met up with the set of houses that were set central to the large storage and shipping containers and stopped.

"Everyone out," the driver said, and before Neil could protest several men and women reached inside, pulled the two men out, handcuffed them and took them inside the house.

"How do you think they're not going to find you? You can't just kidnap us! I didn't do anything!" Neil stopped talking as he was pushed roughly into sitting position on a couch, Heero continuing to stare at the floor, impassive. "Come on, man! You're a fucking Gundam pilot, so kick some ass and get us out of here!" The man remained stoic, almost comatose.

"Just shut up, Neil!" a woman yelled, and he tried frantically to look over his shoulder.

"Patty, Patty, I swear to god, I didn't hurt her, I didn't do anything!"

"Exactly. You knew she was in prison, and you didn't do anything to help get her back to us. You may not be one of us, but you betrayed her, and for what? Lavie? Your precious 'freedom'? Get a grip." The woman Heero guessed was 'Patty' sat down across from them. "You have ten minutes each to explain to me why you don't deserve to die, or at least deserve a fair trial first."

* * *

_63% complete_

* * *

"You're telling me this thing is so awesome it can reach thousands of people, but it takes a goddamn hour? Jesus! Get some better coding!" Jesse was slouching behind the table now, looking exhausted despite it being relatively early in the evening. Two notifying lights still blinked on their phones continually, also working as an alarm. If the process was stopped, their phones would immediately shut down the program, alerting them that they had been found out.

"This is the fastest and most secure way. Just be patient." Trowa's phone rang, and he picked it up and stepped away from the table, murmuring quietly as Liam and Jesse continued to question Relena about various inner workings of  _L'Ombre_  and how it really all began.

* * *

_January, A.C. 188, North Wales_

"Relena? Relena…. Hey!" Relena heard the other girls calling her, but she chose to ignore them, sitting in a self-imposed exile, her knees tucked up under her chin.

" _Hey, Lena? If you wanna be left alone then that's cool but I was wondering if maybe you wanted company because you seemed a little lonely and I don't want you to be lonely but if you want to be lonely than that's okay too! Okay, I'll go." Natalie Nemkov was a hyper young girl, the same age as Relena, sporting fair long hair but dark, enormous eyes. Bouncing around from foot to foot, the girl went to run off, and Relena let her, tears starting to well up in her dark eyes._

" _What is wrong, Miss Relena?" The elder Nemkov sister asked in heavily accented English, sitting down next to her._

" _Nothing," she replied, a sob accenting the word, making her flinch at the sound of her own voice._

" _Oh, come now. Do you miss your family? You will see them at Christmastime, don't be so sad." Katarina put her arm around the younger girl, but her words did not seem to comfort. "Talk to me, Relena. Tell me what is wrong."_

_Relena breathed a heavy sigh. "Do you ever feel like something is missing, even if you don't know what it was?" Her large blue eyes turned and stared at the older girl, who nodded, surprised at such introspection from a child even younger than herself. "I'm just so lonely. I feel like I lost something… something important, and it eats me up sometimes. I feel like I have no one to care about, no one to talk to who understands…" she started crying again._

" _Now, now. Stop that right now. You can't sit here in the shadows all day being sad. Sometimes you have to just find something to fill that void. You will find friends who understand, who will help you just like you help them. I can be the first one." Smiling, she stood up, dusting off her pants before walking away._

" _I can stay in the shadows as long as I have people who will stay with me," Relena said quietly before standing up and following, her eerie words making Katarina feel restless and uneasy._

* * *

_89% Complete_

* * *

_I never realized how true that is_ , Relena thought to herself. So many times she had convinced herself to quit, forfeit her job and title and work quietly in an office, retreat into her home and live off her savings, or even take her own life in order to escape the stress, pressure and disappointment that was being Relena Darlian, the Foreign Minister.  _They always brought me back_. Sobbing lightly, Relena looked over to Trowa, who had finished his conversation and rejoined them at the table.

"Wufei wanted you to know that he's 'sending everyone and everything'. Preventer has gotten approval as well, now that Une's seen the blueprints. She's making a presentation tomorrow morning, first thing. Is that enough time?"

Relena sighed, wiping her eyes. "It'll have to be."

* * *

_91% complete_

* * *

"I protected Relena. I love her, you know that! I left  _L'Ombre_  because it scared me. I was selfish… I wanted her to myself, and I couldn't have that if she had you, so I just left." Sighing, Neil looked at the floor. "I learned about what Lavie was doing and I knew it couldn't be good. I came up here before the war started… he came into power when I came of age, and I figured what better way to know what was going on than from the inside? I met the man, got to know him, got to know life on this colony, and it seemed normal for the most part. People just didn't want to change their way of life, and you have to respect that… For these people, the war was all they had. Being a soldier was all they knew… other soldiers were the only friends and family they had. After all the war referendums, they didn't want to live on Earth.

"Once I found out Relena had been kidnapped, I did what I could, but I couldn't risk losing Lavie's trust to save her. If I had, she never would have forgiven me. I gave her the thought, the possibility, and she got away. When she came to me, I didn't turn her in. I'm willing to help you however I can, but you have to let me go. Lavie will know I'm missing. I can talk to others, sympathizers, and see what I can do."

Pattie nodded her head, satisfied, before smiling. "I wasn't asking you, Neil, but thanks for laying yourself out like that anyways." Neil blushed while glaring at her, angry that he had been duped into so freely giving away his feelings. "Now, you," she continued, nodding to Heero. He sat, silent for a minute, before speaking.

"I never wanted to hurt her. She was everything to me, but her job was everything to her… I saw what was happening here, and I knew that if it got out of hand, she'd blame herself, so I left. I hurt my friends, I abandoned the woman I… I love. I left all of that to get inside of this and find out what was happening. She showed up at my door a month ago, and I found out what they'd done to her…" He closed his eyes, his handcuffed hands turning white with the force of his hands making closed fists in anger. "It's unacceptable. There are ways to live and fight the majority opinion without killing anyone or taking away anyone else's choices."

Pattie looked at him, and Middie sat down, somewhat dazed. "Didn't know he even talked."

"No kidding. Well, unfortunately, Yuy, that doesn't tell me why we should save you."

"You shouldn't," he said brokenly, and the two women frowned. "If you don't kill me, my own friends and family will. Relena left me even when she knew I wouldn't hurt her. There's no reason to stay; I've hurt her enough for a lifetime."

Pattie sighed, standing up and releasing both the man's handcuffs before kneeling before Heero. "I'm not gonna kill you, even though part of me would love to. You hurt her, yes, a lot more than I think you'll ever really know. Relena's a tough woman, but she's been through a lot of loss. You never really recover from losing two families and the man you love in twenty years o' living." Looking into his eyes, she continued. "She loves you, and she'd kick our asses if we killed you. You're gonna have to work with us, and we'll figure things out with Wufei and the others. They don't know you're here, Trowa's kept your secret because you kept hers. Respect that." Heero nodded, mollified.

"Hey, you hear that?" Middie asked, fishing her phone out of her pocket, the notifying light blinking as it beeped for her attention. Several others in the room and the surrounding ones did the same, and Middie's eyes widened. "Holy crap. Holy crap! I didn't think she'd do it this soon! How in the hell did Wufei pull it together fast enough?"

"I know," Heero said, and they all turned to him. "I sent him the blueprints. Une will know. Preventer will be on their way."

"Wonder when she's gonna make the call," Pattie said, taking out her own receiver and sitting down between the two men, staring at the screen.

"What are you talking about?" Neil asked, vocalizing the question Heero had been wondering for hours.

"Watch," she said, and the screen lit up.

* * *

_100% Complete_

* * *

"You ready?" Liam asked, and Relena nodded, swallowing carefully as the video screen finally started up. Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, Relena sighed before starting.

Opening her eyes, she looked out on what she hoped were still, and would always be, her many friends, allies and comrades. Smiling slightly, she spoke.

"Hello, everyone."


	22. Choices

"Hello, everyone. You know I would not make this call if it were not of the utmost importance. If you think you may be compromised, I suggest you leave the call now and ask another about it later. Thank you." Pausing for a few moments, Relena took another deep breath and continued.

"I know that many of you I haven't had the pleasure of speaking to in some time, and for that, I'm quite sorry. I'm sorry to have to ask so much of you all after so long, after promising that the sacrifices were over, that we could all be safe, but so much more than ourselves are at stake. Someone here, on the colony were I was kidnapped, imprisoned and tortured, is trying to end life on Earth and take over the other colonies during the anarchy."

"Holy balls. How does she know this stuff? I swear to god, it's like she's the all-seeing-eye or something!" Middie watched her phone, smiling at the sight of her friend.

"Shh!" Pattie glared at her, watching her screen intently, the two men on either side of her leaning over to watch.

"Several among you have been getting information to me over the years about this situation, and for the risks you've taken and your faithfulness I am extremely grateful. I am afraid I must ask for even more. There are millions of people living on this colony who, unfortunately either believe the lies Lavie has told them and are ignorant to their choices among the free world, or those who see the lie and have decided to fight for the sake of fighting. Those of you in position on the colony, I need you to secure a place where we can gather safely and without drawing attention. Some of you will need to assist me in exposing the truth about Lavie's real plan to his citizens. The last of you will need to fight."

"I can't believe this…." A voice said from the corner, a young man Heero didn't recognize. "She's so serious about this… Relena would never ask us to fight if we didn't have to. What's is really going on here?"

"Be quiet!"

"You know I wouldn't ask you to fight if it wasn't totally necessary. Sometimes we have to fight for what we believe in, and that is what I am asking of you now. Along with the Preventers, we also have… some other assistance in less government-mandated forms. Accept their help, learn from them all, and work with them all. We all need each other if we are to stand a chance.

"It's not just about our beliefs, though, it is about life. These people feel that, instead of fighting, they must simply eliminate anyone who opposes their opinion quickly and silently. We must show them that this is not how we achieved peace. This colony is peopled with warriors, soldiers and spies who watched people give up their lives for what they believed, but Lavie has turned them into spiteful, angry assassins bent on total control. If we can stop them, we can save them all, the pacifists and those living on this colony."

The woman on camera took a deep breath, and for some reason Heero was reminded of the time Relena spent in prison, marveling at her calm ability to forgive the citizens of the colony, including the people responsible for her pain. "All that said, there are a few select men and women whom I can't say I'd mind seeing on the wrong end of a gun, however selfish that may be. Some people, regardless of what they say, are more responsible for this than others. Heero Yuy is _not_  among them."

Middie groaned, physically slapping the screen of her phone against her face.

"I know that he has committed betrayals, but I believe it was for the best. I believe in him, and I ask you, all of you," Heero realized she was addressing Wufei, "to do the same, at least until this insanity is over.

"Wufei Chang is coordinating the effort for those off-colony, please contact him before you fall into orbit or attempt to enter through customs. For those on the colony, please be careful and contact whoever you feel you can trust. And thank you. Thank you for even giving me the choice and opportunity to ask this. Thank you for letting me and the people of Earth and space to put their faiths in you. Be safe."

The connection terminated, and those in the room stared at Heero warily. "Well, we still get to shoot him if he does any stupid shit, right?" Middie asked, glaring at him. "Don't think you're getting out of this that easily. She might be thankful you didn't kill her, but your friends probably aren't gonna be so forgiving… not to mention Wufei totally knows you're here now, and is probably going to bring the others with him."

"Wait," Pattie said, looking at the communication screen again. "Did you send this? Is that why she's letting you go?" Holding out the small device to them, it showed a distinct, perfect copy of the blueprints Lavie had so recently given to them.

"I didn't send them… I don't think he did either. How could we, we've been here this whole time?" Neil looked at Heero, as though hoping that he had committed some act of extreme charity or selflessness that would free them from their current status as prisoners of war.

Heero said nothing, staring at his feet.  _I believe in him_ , her words echoed in his mind, an answer to an age-old request, one he could hardly believe had stood the test of time.

"Alright everybody, we've got to get this place prepared for the others," Pattie said, and Middie almost immediately brightened.

"Ooh, we get guns!"

* * *

Relena closed the computer and settled back against the back of her chair, closing her eyes."How was that, do you think?" she asked, and Liam patted her hand.

"As good as it could be. They know what's going on now, and they don't just have to take your word for it. Someone just sent me a copy of the blueprints and some transcripts from Lavie's meetings. Whoever's got the info is coming from pretty high up." Relena nodded, still not opening her eyes.

"I never wanted this. I never wanted to have to do this. We survived the last war without calling on them."

"This is different, Relena. This isn't some massive thing… Preventer doesn't have the numbers to face this on their own. We're willing, Relena. We're willing to fight for you, all of us." Liam tried to comfort the woman, but she continued to let her head rest on the neck of the chair, her eyes closed, as though using the energy to open them was instead diverted to some inner struggle.

"Relena, we should go," Trowa said, taking the computer and packing it up. "Chances are someone will have traced that, even if we're not sure who. If we get out of here now, we have the chance to get to where Middie and the others are safely. You'd be safe out there. We'll be able to see whoever's coming for miles." Taking her hand, Trowa pulled Relena out of the chair slowly, taking her into his arms. "Come on, now. You're safe. This is almost over. The worst is over."

Relena looked up at him, tears in her eyes. "Don't say that." Walking past him, she repacked the few things she had brought in her small bag, sadness showing in her posture. "I don't understand, Trowa. I don't understand."

"Neither do I, Relena, but you've done what you can. It will all come together, I promise you. We'll get answers, and we'll make sure nothing like this happens again."

"Don't, Trowa." Relena had fierceness in her voice now, something he could not identify. "Don't make me those promises. I've heard them all before, and now we're here, again. Nothing has changed. Nothing."

"Stop it, Lena. Don't talk like that." Even Jesse's face looked pinched now.

"I'll talk however I want! This is the truth! I have worked for years for this, gave months of my life in prison being abandoned and hurt over what I believe in, and you want me to believe that somehow this is better than it was? My own brother wanted to destroy the Earth, make it unliveable not five years ago. There is  _no_  difference. No progress. Now stop talking to me, and let's go." Opening the door, Relena stepped out, unafraid, angry and hurt.

"What are we going to do with her?" Liam asked, taking his own bag over his shoulder.

"I don't know," Trowa said quietly. "This isn't something that we can fix."

* * *

Typing away furiously, Wufei finally let his hands rest, reading over what he had written carefully. The room was full of people doing the same, helping him construct, in a rapidly shortening space of time, a viable plan of infiltration for the colony X-18997. He thought, on at least five occasions, that they had finally finished, but there was always one more weakness, one more situation that needed to be analyzed, and he was exhausted.

"How's it coming, Agent Chang?" Commander Une asked, looking over his shoulder at the simulation running on his screen.

"This is about as good as it will get, I think. There's just no way to ensure that no one escapes. We don't have the numbers, even with all the help. We just have to make sure that Lavie and his closest don't get away."

"Well, if that's the best you can do, that's what we've got to. We're leaving in less than 6 hours, which barely gives us the required time to reach L2. Thankfully we're going to be in the right season to reach them quickly. Alright, everyone, you'll get instructions when you need them. Get to carrier bays and start prepping for takeoff." The other agents scrambled at the Commander's request, excited and trepidations at encountering their first major mission since the founding of the Preventer organization. Wufei wished he could share in their sense of purpose, but all he could think about was the message he had seen from Relena.

 _She knew_ , he thought.  _They all knew. She knows I want to murder him. She knows he tried to kill us and she still loves him. Stupid woman_.

"Anytime today, Chang," Une said pointedly, and Wufei followed, sullen.  _You won't get away this time, Yuy_.

* * *

Back in space, dozens of people were arriving at the pseudo-ranch, some staying outside, discussing strategy, some staying in, catching up on rest or monitoring, waiting for Relena's arrival. Heero and Neil were, for the most part, ignored, having played their parts in the grand scheme of things.

"So, you tried to kill your friends, huh?"

"Yeah."

"You gonna kill me?"

"No."

"Oh, okay. Cool." Neil stayed quiet a few more moments, staying seated on the couch as though he were afraid of disturbing anyone by leaving. "Well. What do you think's gonna happen? Relena seemed pretty confident they're gonna kick ass. You think they can take Lavie?"

"Yes."

Neil sighed. "But how do you know? They could just kill us now, save themselves the trouble of figuring out whether or not we're trustworthy later."

"You sent them the information, they know you're trustworthy enough."

Neil practically laughed. "Only because she put a gun to my head! If she doesn't kill me herself know I'll be practically shocked."

"They're not going to kill you. You're only here because Relena wants to make sure you're safe and don't end up getting murdered by Lavie for basically giving away all his secrets." Heero looked at him now, tiring of the man's incessant worrying. "They likely won't even kill me, but it'll only be because she tells them not to. I deserve whatever comes."

"But when you explain, surely they'll understand. I mean, we all do some crazy things for the people we love, and you guys must love the Earth and space to have done what you did. I'm pretty sure they'll understand." Their uncomfortable silence once again pervaded until Neil spoke up. "So, you really love her, huh?"

"Yes."

"She loves you, too. A lot. I loved her, once. Probably still do, but admitting it now would just be insult to injury, you know? We were pretty close, but she ignored me for you."

"What?" Heero looked at him, honestly surprised.

"Yeah, we went to the same school you started up at. When you showed up, she just became kinda obsessed, you know? It was like… you made the whole war real to her, and she couldn't let that go. I couldn't stand watching her like that so I left a little while after you transferred."

"I'm sorry," Heero said, and Neil looked at him, puzzled.

"Why? You didn't do anything wrong. It was her choice, always has been."

Heero shook his head, staring at the floor. "I took that choice from her. She would have been happy with you. Safe. Ever since I walked into her life I've done nothing but hurt her. She'd throw herself in front of a bus if she thought it would make me happier. I just couldn't stand seeing it happen anymore."

"So you left her because of that?" Middie asked, clearly eavesdropping from her perch across the room. "That's got to be the stupidest thing I've ever heard." Approaching them, she put her hands on her hips. "Relena would jump in front of a bus for a starving kitten if she thought her final moments would make it purr. She's a born martyr, always has been. People try to say she's so tough, but it's really just a brave face she puts on for all of us to make us feel like we're doing a good job. One day, it's gonna just fall off her and she'll have no idea what to do with herself."

Neil looked over her shoulder, dark eyes wide. "I think it's already come to that." Trowa Barton walked into the small house, carrying Relena in his arms. Heero was already on his feet, approaching them, when Trowa practically snarled at him.

"You get away from her." Heero backed away, slowly, watching Heero carry her in and lay her down on the couch carefully. "We had to put her under in the car. I don't know what happened, but she just lost it." Looking over his shoulder at Middie, the others could see the worry clearly in his eyes. "It's been this bad before, Mid, but I still don't know what to do for her."

Middie smiled, sadly, patting him on the shoulder. "You've done all you can. The best we can do now is just let her sleep. An identity crisis is the least I'd expect to see after something like this. You don't just walk away from two dead families, being forced to live with your long lost lover crazy killer boyfriend for a month, being locked up in prison, living through two wars and being forced into a job you don't want without a few scars." Thinking momentarily, Middie looked at Heero. "Sorry, 'bout the 'crazy' part, I guess. The rest is still pretty much true." Sighing, Heero sat down on the couch across from Relena, never taking his eyes off her face as he watched her sleep.

"Oh, no, you're not getting off this easily," Trowa said, practically a growl, as he walked over to Heero and hauled him off the couch by his shirt. "What the fuck is wrong with you, huh? After everything we did for you, that's how we get repaid? You almost fucking  _killed_  him, Heero." Trowa pushed Heero against the wall hard, throwing a swift punch that barely missed its target as Heero ducked, Trowa's fist hitting the wall.

"I had to," he said, his voice its typical monotone. "They believed I was just hiding, that they could find me whenever they wanted. I had to make them not  _want_  to find me, and I didn't have time to explain." Ducking again, Heero forced himself forward, pushing Trowa back onto the ground and scrambling not to fall on top of him. Trowa fell gracefully, rolling and standing back on his feet, his face still contorted with anger.

"And you think that taking care of her redeems you? You knew she was here; she was in prison for a month! What the fuck were you doing for her then, huh? They could have killed her." He stopped advancing now, instead staring at Heero, his green eyes boring into him.

"I didn't find out until after she came to me. Lavie claimed she was safe, and I never saw her until she escaped. It wasn't until after that I found out what they'd done to her."

"Well that's great. So what are you going to do about it? You're going to just sit here and do nothing after everything she's done for you, for both of us? What are you going to do for her?"

"I'm here, aren't I?" Heero was irritated now, feeling useless amongst the strangers in the house. "I'll do whatever I can. It's what I came to do, I just wasn't expecting it to be this…"

"Totally insane?" Neil filled in, and Heero nodded. "We didn't know what was going on. Lavie told us that he wanted to rally, protest, typical stuff like that. Take a few of the other independent colonies, because they're not government protected at the most. When he wanted to kidnap Relena, I just kind of went with it. I figured it was scare tactics like with the Bartons… and then he put her in prison and tried to just ruin her." The man shuddered, his voice breaking momentarily before he cleared his throat. "She got out, but Lavie got whatever he wanted, or decided he didn't really need it. He's planning on poisoning the people on Earth, all of them. That was never what I signed up for."

Trowa looked back and forth between them before rolling his eyes slightly. "Duo may never forgive you. He's never really gotten over it. It might have even affected him more than it did Relena."

Heero hung his head.  _Seem to be doing more and more of this lately_. "I know. I'm not expecting him to. When this is over, I'll find someplace else to stay."

"…. So you're going to leave again, then?" Relena asked, and the dozen people in the room stood at practical attention, surveying her as though making sure she were real. Relena ignored them for the time being, instead staring at Heero questioningly. After a few moments of silence, Relena conceded. "I see." Taking her eyes away from him, she turned and started talking to a few others, exchanging hugs and greetings.

Releasing a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding, Heero turned and left the room, Neil and Trowa following after.

"Hey! You can't just walk away from her again! Are you insane?" Trowa pulled at Heero's arm, but the man kept walking, "Do you have  _any_  idea what you did to her?"

The dark haired man stopped then, thinking about Relena's scars.

"What did she do?" he asked, his voice unassertive and quiet.

"She almost died. When you left, you really hurt her. She just shut down for a few months. She wouldn't leave the house unless she had to, she stopped fighting things at work. We expected her to be upset, but with what you did to Wufei and Duo… knowing that you'd stayed on the planet long enough to hurt them without changing your mind just made it worse for her. Then her mother died, and she just lost it. I found her in the bathroom one morning half bled out." Closing his eyes, Trowa looked pained, his face paling. When he opened them, Heero flinched away as Trowa pushed him again. "Don't you  _ever_  make me have to do that again. I don't care if you feel guilty, or if you're worried about hurting her by staying. She made her goddamn choice. She loves you, and she might hate her job, but she knows someone has to do it, and she does it. She made those choices, Heero. They're done."

"Whatcha doin'?" Middie asked, coming down the corridor. "Don't mean to interrupt, but I wondered if you guys wanted to help upstairs with the planning. Wufei just sent us their info…. They're on their way."


	23. Soon

"Relena, stop pacing. It's gonna be fine. Just sit and eat something, please?" Relena barely registered that she had heard Trowa at all, lifting her head in his direction slowly before continuing to walk over her small piece of floor.

"Something isn't right…" she whispered, and she furrowed her brow hard as she continued to walk. "There's no way they could not have noticed by now. Do you two just regularly disappear?" Looking up at Neil and Heero, she rolled her eyes. "I guess that was a stupid question."

"Why are you so stressed out? Nothing bad's even happened. Wufei and the others should be here in less than three hours. Please, just eat. This is going to be hard enough without it." Relena shook her head, clasping her hands behind her back.

Heero stood up, grabbed the now cooling plate of food and approached Relena. Taking her shoulder, he pushed her toward a chair, sat her down and put the food in her lap. "Eat. You wearing a hole in the floor is making me insane." Staring at him, mouth open, Relena didn't protest. Beginning to eat, she still looked deep in thought.

"Is she gonna be okay?" Pattie asked, watching Relena carefully from where they sat at the kitchen table.

"I have no idea. She's beyond the breaking point, now. We need to get her out of here." Trowa ate slowly, watching her as well.

"Do you think she'll go back to work, after all this?"

Trowa shook his head. "I don't know. Honestly, by now… I hope not. She needs a break. She needs stability, and for years now she just hasn't had it." They all nodded, understanding the woman's predicament. Many members of  _L'Ombre_  had fought in one of the wars or were involved with politics; they could understand the sacrifice and thanklessness of taking a job such as hers.

"Shit!" Middie shouted, taking her phone out of her pocket, it ringing lightly. "Yeah? Sweet. Okay. Well, how are you gonna get in? Yeeaaaaah, that's my boy. Alright. I've got people at the main port, see if we can't get you in that way." Hanging up, Middie looked at Relena. "Was Wufei. Said if he can't get in they'll just blow the door open. You think she's stable enough to give an address?" Neil and Trowa looked at her and back to Relena. "Yeah, that's probably a 'no'… oh well, no choice, I'm afraid. Hey, Lena!" Pushing her chair out, Middie knelt down in front of her friend.

"You ready to talk to these people?"

"No," Relena replied forcefully after swallowing what she could choke down of her meal.

"Well, how about you just talk  _at_  them? We're going to make it a one-way address. Simon has it set up in the other room for you. We'll just highjack vidcoms for a few minutes, you say what you need to say and that'll be it." Relena nodded, putting her plate down on the floor and following Middie out of the room. The others followed as well, curious as to how Relena would deal with the situation.

"Okay, Miss Relena," the man named Simon said, adjusting a headset off one ear. "I've got it set up, we're just waiting on you. You've got a little while until Wufei can get in, so there's time if you need to… get it together, so to speak."

Relena shook her head slowly. "No, it's fine. I know what I have to do. Thank you." Simon nodded and gestured for her to take a seat.

"Alright. You've done this all before, Lena. Win us some hearts. Five…" counting down, Simon finally waved to her, and Relena began, once again, to speak.

* * *

"Hey, our communications went down!" A younger agent yelled, and several let out sounds of agreement.

"No, wait. It's not down… something's coming in." Looking at his commanding officer, the young man waited until Wufei nodded.

"Let the signal in. I think I know who it is." The screens turned on, and Relena Darlian appeared in the flesh, drawing gasps and surprise from the other agents.

"Hello. I am ESUN Foreign Minister Relena Darlian, and this is a broadcast to the citizens of the colony X-18997. At Christmas, 199, I was kidnapped and kept forcefully and against my will in prison by colony representative Lawrence Lavie and a group of his followers, citizens of your colony. During this time I was beaten, interrogated and assaulted as they attempted to extract information from me regarding the system for 'acquiring' other colonies. Lawrence Lavie wishes to, essentially, conquer other colonies in his name; other colonies who, too, have chosen to remain separate from the ESUN and are thus unprotected by any official group. In doing so, he hoped to solidify his power in space.

"Because I did not tell him, nor sign the paperwork that would ensure him as your permanent President, I was kept in terrible conditions for nearly two months. Pushed to that point, I escaped, causing the death of one of the men who guarded me. I was kept in the care of a man I believed to be dead, a former agent of the Preventers and a trusted agent of your own Representative. He protected me and brought me back to health, and for that I'm very grateful. Since then, I have come in contact with sympathizers among you, people who object to the plans Lavie has for your colony and, as such, for you."

Relena nodded to someone off screen before continuing, her voice narrating, as several photos, short videos and shots of the blueprints appeared onscreen. "For the past year, at the least, Lavie and a crew of specially trained mechanics and engineers have been constructing a device, hidden within the inner maintenance workings of this colony. This device, as you see, is highly complex. It is manufactured with the express purpose of holding a chemical which, when humans contact it, quickly sterilizes whoever comes into contact with it, rendering them incapable of reproduction. Lawrence Lavie intends to send these capsules to Earth, ensuring that those who live there peacefully, accepting the ESUN and living with pacifistic leaders, would be unable to pass these beliefs onto their children."

Agents began to murmur amongst themselves, worrying now. "We are aware that this colony by nature is a home of many who sacrificed their well-beings during the Eve war and the Barton rebellion, and as such you feel the need to protect your identities and feel safe with your beliefs. No one on the Earth Sphere or the ESUN wishes to take from you. Before I left to visit this colony, I submitted this." A new document splashed on the screen.

"This is an act that, when passed, will change the definitions of the War Criminals Act. It will ensure that soldiers, especially child soldiers and those protecting the colonies, will be freed and ensured safety under the law. You can live as free men and women, but only if your colony allies with the ESUN. If your colony maintains independent status, you will not be eligible within the statutes of this law.

"This is the proposition I am making to you. Help us depose Lavie, take hold of his law and the protection of the ESUN, and live peacefully as you have. Those of you who wish to aid the effort by the Preventers may do so easily. The spaceports will be open; those of you who wish to leave may do so. For those who wish to stay and aid Lavie, there will be no escape. If it comes to violence, you will be defeated, and those who survive will be tried to the full extent of the law. It is your choice, as it has always been. Thank you."

The screens quickly turned back to black, leaving many young and older agents staring at Wufei questioningly. "Well, you heard her! Let's get in there!"

"Damn, this is exciting!" Middie said, sitting in the passenger seat of a different vehicle, Trowa, Relena, Neil and Heero traveling along with her. "That was a damn good speech, lady! You sure know how to pump up a crowd."

"That wasn't the point, Middie," Relena said exhaustedly. "Either way, it obviously worked."

"How can you tell?" Neil asked, looking out the window curiously.

"The streets are empty. If they knew we were coming and wanted to stop us, they'd be storming us by now. We can only help that people have either left or met at Lavie's tower of insanity by now."

Trowa looked in the rear-view mirror. "Tower of insanity? Really?"

"There's no better name for it," Heero said, surprising them all, neatly ending the conversation until they, too, arrived near the spaceport, ready to meet with the incoming troops.

Bella's insurgents were the first to arrive, herself and her sister both outfitted with bulletproof armor and their own weapons. "Miss Relena! I'm so happy you're safe!" Dorothy shouted, flitting over and wrapping her arms around the younger woman, her one hand still occupied with a large handgun. "Look at all this!" she said again, motioning behind her to the group of men and women, line after line of uniformed family.

"Sicilian Mafia?" Heero asked, and Bella nodded, smiling behind her sunglasses.

"Don't worry, we're fighting with you guys, for now. Personally, I'd like to see the offspring of our little Doratia. Can you imagine!" Relena rolled her eyes as Heero watched her, clearly only now recalling the similarities in the two sister's personalities.

"We appreciate the help, Bella," she said, kissing the older woman's hand. Bella in return kissed hers, marking her as an equal. "Now, have the Preventers arrived yet?" Gunshots were heard in the distance, and Relena ducked compulsively, the others crowding around her, drawing their own weapons for protection. "They're here, docking and unloading their agents to they can take the surviving civilians out of here… Speak of the devil." Turning as though she had a sixth sense, Bella looked over her shoulder at Anne Une, smiling coyly as she approached. Opening her mouth to speak, she was interrupted by the Preventer Commander.

"Not now," was all she said to the woman, dismissing her and instead turning back to her groups of agents who were lining up nervously along with those loyal to the Catalonia family. "As you can see, there are already hundreds of families ready to get the hell out of this place. Some of you will stay and help them, the rest of you are going to go along with your officers and patrol the colony, rounding up insurgents before rendezvousing at the colony tower." Pointing to the massive landmark, the Commander stood at attention. Hundreds of hands raised in salutes before the men and women marched off, working in tandem to clear the massive space.

Wufei joined the group, walking up and sweeping Relena into a completely unexpected hug. Relena, recovering quickly, laughed into his shoulder, wrapping her arms around him and smiling. "I can safely say I've never been this happy to see you!" she said through happy tears, and the rest of the group nearest her laughed along with them.

Wufei smiled slightly, stepping to the side. "There's more where this came from." Behind him, Duo Maxwell and Quatre Winner joined them, passing by where they had waited, speaking to the Commander. Relena practically shrieked as she ran to Duo, jumping into his arms. He kissed her on both cheeks before passing her off to Quatre, who hugged her shyly and kissed her on the forehead.

"I'm so glad you're okay, Miss Relena," he said, pulling her in for another hug.

"Quatre, if you call me that again, especially on a day like today,… I'll have to strangle you." Quatre paled as Duo let out a booming laugh, putting his arm around the young woman.

"Well, good to see you're back in fighting shape, but I think we gotta get this show on the road. You driving?" Duo asked, nodding to Trowa. They piled into a few SUV's, heading quickly for the epicenter of their attack: the Tower.

It wasn't until they had arrived that Relena realized Heero was gone.

* * *

Breathing hard, Heero practically dove in the door at Lavie's command center. No one stopped him on the way, assuming that he was there to help them beat back the massive number of enemy forces that were parked on their doorstep.

"Li, I need you for a moment," a familiar voice called, and Heero stopped running, looking down the hall for the owner. Lavie stood waiting for him at the end of the hall, his arms crossed in front of him. Heero approached warily, hyperaware of the feeling of cold metal against his back where his hastily 'borrowed' handgun pressed against his skin. He followed Lavie into the room and looked at the older man. "So, I assume you knew this was coming, Yuy," he said, facing away from him, slouching as though there was a weight on his shoulders.

"Yes," Heero said, unsure if the man was expecting his answer.

"Well, you can kill me, if that's what you're after." Turning to face him, Lavie looked exhausted, but also angry. "What are you waiting for? I'm sure it would gain you all the favor in the world with your precious princess."

"I made a promise to her. I don't plan on breaking it over someone like you," he said, turning away from the older man. "Your time here is over, Lavie. Turn yourself in and tell your people to do the same. It's the only chance you have." Leaving the office, Heero closed the door behind him, taking in the din and panic centering at the Tower. He headed further into the central portions of the complex, finding a pair of stairs and running up them, taking two at a time.  _It has to be in here, somewhere_.  _If I were Lavie, where would I hide it?_  He reached the Eighth floor quickly, sweat trickling down his brow, matting his dark hair against his face. Pushing it aside, Heero walked down the abandoned hallway, searching through room after room of boxes, abandoned offices, and storage closets, before reaching the one he needed.

"Here you are," he whispered, stepping inside. The room was entirely unlit save for one large, LED-light bomb sitting squarely on what had once been Lavie's desk.

* * *

"Relena, get  _down!"_ Duo barked, pushing her over with him in what had once been the parking lot of Lavie's complex and was now, apparently, a war zone. Blasts, gunshots and yells were constant, dust hanging in the air as more and more of the tarmac was torn apart, the remaining colonists becoming more and more heavily armed with each passing moment.

"Duo, she with you?" a voice asked, and Duo grabbed the intercom strapped to his shoulder.

"Yep, can't get the girls off me," he replied smartly, winking at the girl before looking up through the window of the abandoned car they hid behind. "Okay, looks like a clear shot. You've gotta stay he- hey!"

Relena was off like a shot, barreling through the parking lot and hiding beneath a large shipping truck just before a shell landed nearby, deafening Duo as he landed next to her. "What in the hell was that?" he shouted, moving closer to her.

"Duo, there's something you have to know. I think Wufei may know already… or Trowa's telling him, but you need to know.. Heero is on this colony. He's the one who took care of me when I escaped. He's been helping the others before you got here!"

Duo looked at her, mouth agape, before the sound of voices pushed them both into action. Relena scurried out from under the truck quickly, raising her gun and returning shots from behind the truck, before running across the last of the lot, standing just to the side of the main steps. "What are you talking about, 'he's here'! Why didn't you fucking tell me before? He was right there, wasn't he? Jesus Christ, did he hurt you?"

"No, Duo!" Relena shouted back, putting her hands against his face, the gun still resting in her palm. "He took care of me. He's going to save us. He didn't want to hurt you, but he needed to be free. He needed us to keep from following him so that he could learn everything we now know about this situation. Please. Don't hurt him."

Duo glared at her, taking her hands off him roughly. "He almost killed me, Relena. He should have told us. He could have trusted us."

"We could have trusted him," Relena retorted, trying desperately to be patient. "Please. Just believe me, he needs our faith in him, now. There's still a risk someone could release those capsules. I'm sure that's where he is."

Duo looked at Relena before stealing a glance around the corner. "You sure you're telling me that, or just saying it because you wish it was true?" Seeing the hurt in Relena's face, Duo took her hand tenderly. "I don't know what he told you, Lena, but the guy's insane, and that's coming from someone who was his best friend. I'll believe we can trust him when I see it." Turning suddenly, Duo fired several shots and two men fell just as they rounded the corner closest to them.

"Oh my god, thanks," Middie Une shouted, throwing herself against the wall, Wufei following after. "You wouldn't believe it out there! What a shit-show…" Wufei nodded in agreement, looking around. "She's comin', will you stop looking around like that? I'm gonna have to find wood to knock on." Finally, Mingmei practically flew around the corner, heaving her back against the wall next to her husband. Wufei leaned down and kissed her, and Duo stared at them, mouth gaping.

"What… in the  _fuck is going on with this DAY?_ " he shouted, startling Relena before she began to howl with laughter.

"Believe me, it gets easier to understand. Soon. Now's not the time." Finally, Trowa and Quatre crossed the open space, the area cleared of any combatants. Bella, Dorothy and Pattie followed after them, the two sisters smiling, gloating over their seemingly cinched victory.

"Told you it would be a waste of gas," Bella said, snapping a new clip into her gun, tossing the old one over her shoulder.

"It's not over yet," Wufei admonished. "We've got to head inside and figure out what the hell's going on." Turning, Middie held him back.

"Wait. Can't you hear that?" she asked, and they turned to see Lavie himself stumble graceslessly out of the building, the rumbling of explosions making his steps shaky. "Hey, you! Freeze!" Middie shouted, and Lavie turned toward them, leering at Relena.

"You think you've won, hmm? You think you even stood a chance? It's all the better you brought all these bastards along with you. Now I'm taking you all along with me."

* * *

Inside the tower, Heero struggled to figure out the workings of the explosive. From what he could tell, it was meant to bring down the building and anything surrounding it, made of lightweight metals and alloys bound around a sophisticated timer. Sweating still, Heero wiped his brow with his sleeve, typing furiously into the nearby computer. It was several minutes before he looked up, checking to see if the status of the bomb had changed, and saw a familiar face. The strange, nervous man he had met in his basement encounter with Lavie, Samuel Creed, stood in the doorway, watching him.

"You can't diffuse it," he said, remaining in the doorway. "Once it's rigged, there's no stopping it. Lavie made it that way." Heero ignored him, looking back at the computer, continuing to work through the programming attached to the mechanics of the destructive device. "You'll die here, along with all the rest of them," Samuel said again, his typically shaky voice firm now, resolute. "You and Neil and the rest of those stupid men. All of you will be gone, and I'll be all she'll have to turn to." Smiling, Sam watched as Heero typed in a final command before staring at him.

"What are you talking about?" He said, pulling several wires out of the bomb. Sam flinched as he did it, seemingly surprised it didn't immediately engage.

"She loves you. I'm going to save her, get her out of here, and you'll all be gone. Then I can have her all to myself." Turning, Sam began to walk away, and Heero realized with a sickening feeling that he was referring to Relena.

"Like hell you will," he said, marching down the hallway after him, breaking into a run as Lavie's lackey took off, shouting warnings about his allegiance to what were clearly other enemies in the stairs. Changing his plans quickly, Heero dove into the luckily open elevator, punching the key for the ground floor and mentally begging it to go faster. After several agonizing minutes, the door chimed and he barreled out the door, the front entrance in sight, bright sunlight almost blinding him as he reached the outdoors, throwing the door open with one hand, the other supporting the explosive. Reaching the outdoors, he looked briefly at what had once been his workplace car lot and was now a dessicated wasteland of ash, dust and half charred vehicles, some still violently on fire.

Lavie turned and looked at him, furious, as Heero spied the other pilots, his friends, and Relena, crowded into the shelter at the side of the entrance, staring at him, shocked.

"You," Lavie said, menacing, as he advanced on him.

"Give it up, Lavie. It's over. You've lost. All your men are dead, and the rest abandoned you. End this, now." Heero was unarmed now, realizing he had left his gun on the desk in his enemy's office.

"It's over when I say it's over!" Lavie shouted, jumping at Heero, who turned just in time to see Samuel exit through the door, gun brandished. Sam saw him, turned to Relena and, with one fateful move of a finger, pulled the trigger.

"Oh my god!" Relena practically screamed, fighting against the men who held her back as she tried desperately to reach Heero, watching helplessly as he dropped to one knee. Sam advanced on him, a horrified expression on his face, and despite his anger and desire for revenge even Duo found himself sighing in relief as Sam walked past where Heero crouched to Lavie, his fallen leader.

"Oh, god," he croaked out, kneeling down next to the blond man. The shot that Sam had fired entered and exited Heero's body, the close range allowing it to hit Lavie straight in the heart, killing him nearly instantly. Blood pooled around their feet, and Sam began to sob.

"Relena, we have to run," Trowa whispered, and she looked up at Heero, who was holding the bomb out from his openly bleeding chest meaningfully. "Come on, go, go!" Trowa said, and they lurched into motion, jogging across the empty parking lot.

"No, no! We can't leave him there! Oh, my god, Sam! Oh my god, this isn't happening," Relena sobbed, barely able to run. Finally, Duo grabbed her behind the legs and swept her up, carrying her the remaining distance. Looking over Duo's shoulder, Relenea watched in horror as the man she loved ran down the steps shakily before pitching the bomb behind him, back into the building.

The last thing she remembered was a monstrous shaking and her own scream echoing in her ears before she was swept up in darkness.

 


	24. The End

"Relena. Relena? Come on girl. Wake up." Relena was slightly aware of a hand patting her face and the aching feeling in her heart, physically and emotionally, as she sat up, groaning. She opened her eyes and coughed, her mouth seemingly full of dust as she looked around, slowly remembering what had happened. Trying to stand too quickly, she wobbled and grasped for something to keep her balance. Trowa stood next to her, grabbing her arm and keeping her steady. "Stop, Lena. Hold still, you're bleeding. You've likely got a concussion, you hit your head pretty hard. Be careful."

"Oh, god," she choked out, taking a drink of an offered bottle of water. The once enormous office tower was now reduced to rubble, gray dust coating everything in eyesight. "Heero," she gasped, dropping the bottle and running toward the wreckage. "Oh, god. No, no, no,no, no," she continued to cry out, throwing herself into the mess, ignoring the cuts on her legs and hands as she tried desperately to dig through the broken concrete and glass.

"Relena, he's not in there. Come on, love," Trowa said, trying to haul her away. Relena fought back savagely, pushing the man away, resorting to blows when he refused to relent.

"You just let him! You just let him run in there alone! I don't  _care_  what he did to you!" she shouted, punctuating her sentences with hits to his chest and stomach. "You son of a bitch! He did all this for us, and you let him!" Relena sobbed again, the sound strained through her sore throat, tears raining down her cheeks as she finally stopped, falling against Trowa and letting the sobs wrack her body.

"Come on now, Lena. I'm serious. He's not there anymore. Come away. Come on, let's go. There's things to get sorted. 'Atta girl." Relena slowly became aware of the volume of people passing through the area, relief workers, Preventer agents and the like helping with the injured, seeing families back to the homes that hadn't been destroyed in the blast. Men, women and children all filed back from the spaceport, forced to walk as the destruction had spread into the street, the Preventer forces battling with insurgents and rebels all over the colony."These are the families who chose to fight with us. They had something they wanted to say to you," he said, shrugging, before they turned and faced the crowd.

"Thank you, Foreign Minister," one man said, shaking her hand, and dozens followed, turning into hundreds, turning into thousands as the thanks, love and proclamations of pride echoed around through the colony. Relena started crying, holding her face with her hands before turning to the people and waving to them, shocked. Media members circled the crowd meticulously, capturing every moment.

"I can't believe this," she said, turning to Trowa, who had put an arm around her to steady her. "No one's ever… done anything like this for me before."

"Well, Cherie, it's long overdue then, ain't it? Enjoy your moment. Everyone loves you, and they always will after this. You kicked some real ass, and you didn't even have to use force to do it." Duo walked up slowly, hugging the young woman tightly before releasing her as another Preventer agent approached, an exasperated look on her face.

"Miss Relena, I'm so sorry, but the President's on the line for you," she said, holding a phone out to the young blond carefully. Relena took it, dumbfounded, before pressing the handset to her ear.

"Yes, Mr. President? Of course. Thank you. Well, we did what we had to. Yes, of course. Thank you…. Are you- yes, well… yes, I suppose so. Goodnight, Mr. President." Closing the cellular device, Relena tossed it out into the wreckage of the old building, fuming as Duo laughed.

"What was that about?" he asked, and she shook her head, untied her hair from its high ponytail and shook it out hard, trying to get the ash and cement dust off her scalp.

"Apparently I'm to give a media address 'as soon as I am capable of doing my job'. I swear, I hate that man. I'll run for President next year just so I can be the one to fire him." Straightening the bulletproof jacket she had on, Relena winced as she touched her head wound, pulling her hair into a ponytail. Before she could even prepare herself she was surrounded by cameras and microphones, reporters prodding her for information, survival rates, casualties, and all she could think of was the one man who, almost surely, was now buried beneath tonnes of desecrated concrete and glass. Steeling herself once more, Relena looked into the cameras and began her second address of the past 48 hours.

"Citizens of the Earth Sphere United Nation, I am speaking now to deliver what is, on the whole, good news: we have, after a compact battle, secured safety of the residents of X-18997 and destroyed whatever remains of the construction of Representative Lavie's plans and mechanisms for releasing sterilizing chemicals onto the Earth. A formal release of information regarding all military action on the colony will be given by Commander Une following a more thorough investigation." Relena turned to walk away, hoping that the brief clarification would be enough, but she was quickly bombarded with questions.

"Foreign Minister Darlian, have Lavie and his followers been brought in?"

"At this point it is safe to assume Lawrence Lavie has died in the collapse of his tower," Relena said, gesturing to the ruins nearby. "Once we find the remains we can be certain. Many workers on this colony have survived and been detained for further questioning and to be charged as enemies of the state."

"Will any be tried under the old War Crimes Act? The new act has yet to pass; the old one could allow for harsher sentencing."

Relena glared at the young man. "What's in the past needs to remain there. These men and women are no more guilty of War Crimes than myself or any Preventer worker: they did what they had to in a desperate time. What they have done now, here, is inexcusable, and for that they will be charged."

"Minister, please. What do you think caused this sudden rebellion? Why attack the Earth when they already had independence?"

The young woman paused at this, closing her eyes slowly. "In my time here, I asked myself and several of those allied with Lavie the same question. In the end, it came down to freedom of choice. These people wished to live in peace; they fought for it, many had family, husbands, wives, friends who gave their lives to give us the peace we wished for. Unfortunately, continuing in this peace, in my opinion and in the majority opinion of members of the ESUN, requires demilitarization and complete surrender of weapons save for in security situations. Lavie and his associates disagreed with this assertion of power, which is exactly what it was." The reporters froze, listening to her carefully, trying to decipher what she was saying, and Relena saw the faces of several of her own allies among them.  _I'm so sorry, my little shadows..._

"The ESUN used the power of this opinion to force the majority of colonies and regions of Earth to demilitarize, making many feel defenseless and discriminated against. In principle, Lavie's original ideals were correct. It was unfair and unjust for us to take away the choice of these people and others to live their lives as they choose. Should they want to defend themselves, they should be allowed to. Should they chose where they want to live, they should be free to go. Freedom and peace can coexist. As an official of the ESUN I can't speak for the goverment as a whole, but personally... I believe we should have trusted you all more." Looking out over the crowd, Relena thought of her mistakes, of the freedoms she had taken from her own friends, those she considered family, herding them close to her, clinging to them to cure her loneliness, and she thought of Heero.  _We should have trusted you more_.

"In the future, I believe we can avoid incidents like this purely with more open discussion and public accountability. These are things I certainly hope to address upon my return to Earth. Thank you," she said, giving Trowa a pointed look, "and no further questions, please." The crowd of people advanced on her, but Trowa signaled other agents and they quickly dispersed them, pointing them to other people of interest. Walking back toward the Preventer's 'sick wing', she spotted Neil leaving a tent, smiling slightly as he recognized her.

"Well said." Patting her on the bag as he hugged her, he coughed at the dust he dislodged from her jacket. "You really hit the nail on the head. I know Lavie had the wrong way of doing it, but at least the point's been gotten across."

Relena stared at him, her mind working overtime. "It's what you've been trying to tell me the whole time, hasn't it? It's the reason you wouldn't join  _L'Ombre_ , wouldn't be with me... because you wanted to be free? You didn't want your choices taken away." Neil nodded.

"I think Heero's the same way, really. He wants to have the choice to do whatever he likes with his life... but you know in the end, he'll choose defending the peace  _and_  his freedoms over you. Can you live with that?" Relena didn't move, staring out into the distance over his shoulder.  _He must not realize... he must not have seen the blast._ Shaking herself out, Relena patted her own cheeks to keep her tears at bay before walking away from the man, but it was no use; the huge droplets slipped between her lashes, sliding down her cheeks as she turned toward the nearest tent to hide in and compose herself.

She picked a poor place to hide, her friends gathered at one end of the seemingly abandoned medical tent, obscuring her view of whomever was injured, lying in the bed. "You've got to be kidding," someone said. "So he knew it was you and he let you stay? Talk about fatal error." Relena realized it was Wufei speaking and remained by the door, facing away as she wiped the moisture from her eyes.

"Man, someone'd best be there when Lena gets up, or she's gonna lose her mind. Gave us all quite the scare, you know," Pattie said from her perch on a stool in the corner. Relena remained quiet, feeling as though she was intruding.

"So, Heero, what are you going to do now?" Quatre asked, leaning over the bed. "We could just tell her you died… it might be easier for her, that way." Relena sucked in a breath and straightened, her chest constricting, mind racing so fast she barely heard the man answer in that too-familiar voice.

"I love her. I can't leave again. I'm tired of running." Relena choked on a sob again as she let out her long held breath, the group of people parting as she lurched toward the cot, kneeling next to it and staring into the dark blue eyes of the man lying there. Heero smiled slightly, reaching out and touching her hair. "I'm glad you changed it back," he murmured, and Relena laughed lightly before her face grew more grim. "I broke my promise, Relena..."

"What do you mean, Heero?" She wiped away some of her tears.

"I told you I would never kill anyone again... but I killed Sam. I would have killed Lavie, too."

"They would have killed us all, Heero. No one blames you."

Heero shook his head, weak. "You don't understand. Lavie killed your mother. I don't know how, but he killed her. He said so."

Relena paled slightly, resting her head on the cool metal bar of the cot. "I think I knew that, Heero. My mother wasn't even sick. She's hardly ever been sick in my lifetime." She shook her head, crying again. "But she went quickly, and she wasn't young. We avenged her. She would be proud to have given her life to catch this man." Heero stared at her, shocked at her composure.

"..I was serious, Relena. If you'll have me, I won't leave again. I'll always be there to protect you, if that's what you want. If you don't, I'll leave, I promise." Heero, rambling unusually, was cut short by her lips pressing against his.

"Trust me, you," Relena said, pulling away from him. "In the shape you're in, I don't think Sally's going to let you go anywhere, anyways." The others laughed but took their cue, leaving the couple in privacy. "Do you really love me?" Relena asked, and Heero nodded.

"I'm so sorry, Relena. I didn't know… I thought it was just some… teenaged 'thing'. I thought you'd move on and meet some nice, rich, stable ass who would marry you and make you quit that insane job and take care of you. I thought you'd be safe. I'm so sorry." Heero stopped talking, swallowing back the rising lump in his throat just before Relena shushed him gently.

"You have nothing to apologize for. I understand now. You wanted to have your choices, your options... you were trying to protect those things for other people, even me. You saved us again. Thank you, Heero," she whispered, kissing him on both his cheeks, his forehead, his eyelids and finally on his lips. "But I still choose you. I chose you then, and I do now, and I always will. I love you." Sighing, she pushed his hair off his forehead, revealing a long cut along his temple. "Say it again," she whispered, pressing her forehead to his.

"I love you," he answered obediently, and he felt her lips smile as she kissed him again.

"I love you, too," she said, standing up. "I'll be back, I promise," and Heero watched her leave. Relena smiled back at him briefly through the door of the tent as she passed through, but her expression fell as she spotted Neil approaching. His jacket and dark hair were still covered in dirt and soot, but he was still smiling as he, too, wrapped her up in a hug.

"He alright?" he asked, resting his chin on her fair haired head, and she nodded, pressing her chin into his chest. "Well, of course he is." Pulling away, Relena looked at Neil sadly.

"What will you do now?"

Neil smiled stiffly."Stay here, I think. Help with the rebuild. It's been home for a while, you know? Don't wanna just take off. Besides, maybe it'll help you out to have someone you know on the colony. I can't imagine we'll go long without another mandated check-up." Relena shook her head, sighing.

"I don't know if that's going to happen, Neil," she whispered, looking back at the tent, where her friends had regathered. "I don't know if I can go back to that job again. One person isn't enough to change the minds of the ESUN."

"There's not just one of you," Neil said, nodding to a group of people, Middie standing before them, giving directions and helping with first aid. "There's gotta be a thousand. They'll stand by you no matter what."

Looking at the battered, used and bruised people, Relena sighed again. "A childhood clique gone awry. They're here because they feel they have no choice. They would rather fight than feel they've slighted me. They saw me at my worst, and treat me as though I am made of glass. The whole world does. They deserve better than having people in government who they are afraid to oppose simply because they don't want to make us unhappy."

"Now, now," he said. "None of that. They love you, and the Earth will always want you. Besides, if you don't do the job, who will? I know it's rough, but when it comes down to it, people love you, Relena. People everywhere, people you barely know, will do anything for you, and who can blame them? If I had been willing to give up my life for anyone, to let someone make my choices for me, it would have been you. They may not all like it, but they know there's no better hands to be in but yours." Neil smiled, a bit sadder now, and Relena realized he was about to say good-bye. "Now, go on. I'll be around. Apparently you know how to find me, no matter what."

He walked away into the crowd, speaking briefly with the Commander, and Relena felt an urgent need to distract herself from the anxiety and sadness she felt as she realized she may never see some of these, her dearest comrades, again. Approaching the tent, she met up with Duo, noting for the first time that the man was missing his usual companion. "What happened to Hilde, anyways? Why didn't she come with you?" Relena asked, worry striking the anger from her features briefly.

"Well, we wanted to tell you, but you were a tad indisposed," Duo said, smiling. "We're pregnant! I'm gonna be a dad!" Smiling, he let Relena hug him as happiness radiated off her. The rest had reassembled in the tent, packing up as they prepared to make the trip back to Earth. After a brusque 'thank you' between Relena and Commander Une, the motley family boarded a large spacecraft, taking their seats and lifting off quickly. They passed the time amongst them talking easily, Relena explaining her time on the colony, leaving out the more saddening bits; the Catalonia sisters sharing tales of their childhoods alongside the 'Princess', Middie and Trowa being quizzed on their relationship, Mingmei and Wufei showing pictures of their beautiful daughter to the others.

"Hey, Lena, what did el Presidente want?" Middie asked, leaning over the seat to see Relena's face. Groaning, Relena covered her eyes with her arm.

"To let me know that I'm free to take a brief 'vacation', as I completed my field assignment so much more efficiently than expected." Trowa barked out a laugh, and Quatre leaned forward, shocked.

"Relena, you can't be serious. When you get home, you are doing nothing but sleeping, eating and watching all the terrible new movies you missed while you were away, and that's that."

"I never thought I'd get to go home," she whispered, looking over at Heero. Silence settled over the group of people as they solemnly considered what she had said. "But that's not what's important." Standing, Relena cleared her throat, bringing the large passenger bay to silence. "As head members of  _L'Ombre_ , it will be your last duty to inform those who look to you for information that simply... we are no longer to exist." Gasps were released throughout the cabin, several members outwardly vocal.

"Relena, don't be insane!"

"You can't be serious... after all this?"

"'All this' is exactly why I'm saying it. These people here today only fought because they wanted the option to fight. They wanted to make their own choices, to plan their own lives without interference. I can't mandate that their opinion is correct in front of billions of people and still perform the same injustice with you. You deserve your freedom. You all met me when I was just some child, and I made you feel sorry for me. Enough is enough. You're free."

"And what if we don't want to be?" an older man asked, standing and crossing his arms.

"Yeah! Lena, we love you!" Jesse looked slightly panicked, wrinkles forming on his brow as he took in the situation. Finally, it was Wufei who said what they all were thinking.

"Relena, you were a child. Even now, you're one woman. You think that at eight years old you suddenly walked into our lives and made us miserable? You do a great job talking people into things, but not that great. We chose to be there for you then, to serve you and your ideals. They may have changed a great deal since then, and I can't say I've always agreed, but this new change of heart seals your deal. You want us to have choices? Fine. Since you offered, I choose to stay." Sitting down, Wufei put on a pair of reading glasses and flicked open his newspaper nonchalantly, a faint smile on the corners of his mouth.

"You heard the man. You got trapped in your own words, Relena. We're not going anywhere." Pattie, too, sat back down, and the others followed until, finally, they had unanimously agreed. Silence pervaded the shuttle, the allies meditating on the gravity of their choice, the outsiders watching, realizing the affect that so many people united could have.

"Well, it's story time, kids," Middie said, finally breaking the silence, as she began telling Trowa about her time at school with Relena. Many secrets were shared, and it only made their friendships grow stronger, bringing them together. Relena smiled as Heero reached over and held her hand quietly, and she felt a peace that had been absent from her soul for many years. Watching her friends from Preventer, the war, civilians and her oldest companions from  _L'Ombre_  coming together so seamlessly, Relena sighed, closing her eyes and letting the calmness pervade her.

"I love you," Heero whispered into her ear, kissing her on the cheek, and Relena smiled.

"I love you, too," she said, knowing she had finally found what her heart had been searching for.

THE END.


End file.
